2010 College Football Awards
Well, it’s taken me a while but I’ve finally finished my 2nd annual Horse Collar College Football Awards. When I went back and looked at last year’s awards I was shocked to realize that I had gotten them out in December, before the start of the bowl season. I’m glad I waited until after the National Championship Game this year. The downside is that I’m just now getting the awards out and college football is not exactly the topic of the day at this time. I’ve been focused on the NFL playoffs lately and it’s taken me over a month since I started to get these done.
In case you didn’t catch my awards last year, I should explain that my awards probably look different than most. For my “of the year” awards, I usually try and base my decision on who I think performed the best this year, and not necessarily who I think the best player is. On the other hand, for my All-Horse Collar Team (this is my version of the All-American Team) I’m focusing more on who I think the best player is and not putting as much emphasis on who had the best season. In addition, I try not to be overly biased against players from the weaker conferences. These various issues were not nearly as big of a deal this season, as there really weren’t many players from outside of the major conferences who warranted attention, and to be honest, not that many different players had great years.The structure of the awards is very similar to last year. One change I have made involves the naming of my “of the year” awards. Once again, my “Most Outstanding Football Player” award will be called “The Brent Musburger Most Outstanding Football Player Award.” That’s kind of my version of the Heisman. However, this year I have decided to dedicate each of my “of the year” awards. After trying to think of something funny for quite a while, I decided that I would just name the awards after former players who have been forgotten to some extent (or at least are not talked about very often). You’ll notice that many of them were more famous as NFL players than college players. This actually makes sense to me because I tend to forget the names of college players after a few years if they do not go on to the pros. Plus, the awards that are given out in real life (like the Maxwell, Thorpe, etc.) are named after famous college players, so I wanted to go in a different direction.
As I did last year, I’m going to be picking an All-Horse Collar offensive line rather than choosing a tackle, a guard, a center, etc. The reason that I do this is simple: in all honesty, I don’t have any idea who the best left guard has been this season. Nobody does unless they somehow have access to coaching film. I don’t have access to these films, so I find it’s easier to pick the entire offensive line of one team who has done a good job this season. Finally, as I always do, I’ll be handing out some team awards just for fun and ranking some of the best and worst moments of the season.
Now this is very important. Once again this year I selected the “best game” from each conference and tried to give a brief comment about what made each game so good. As usual, I got a little carried away in some of the “best game” recaps, particularly concerning the Conference-USA. This always happens to me. I start off doing fairly succinct recaps, and then somewhere along the line I get sucked in by some sequence of events in a WAC game, and I just start going play-by-play. Before I realize what has happened I have 10 pages of material that really isn’t necessary. But I can’t bear to leave it out because that would mean I wrote it all for nothing (shut up!) and no one will ever read it (I said shut up!). I was planning on including the long recaps but eventually it got ridiculous and I decided just to make it another entry. I have brief comments about the “best games” in this entry, but if you want the hardcore, in-depth recap of the action you need to check out the “Best Games of the 2010 College Football Season” entry.
Finally, I have to add—as I seem to do in every awards entry I do on this blog—that I was nowhere near as satisfied with this year’s awards as I was with last year's. There just weren’t that many options and that meant that I couldn’t spread things around the way I did last year. There are a lot of repeats in the awards and All-Horse Collar teams, and that was a bit boring to be honest. However, it was still pretty fun. And if you happen to stumble across this blog entry somewhere out there in cyberspace, I hope that you will be entertained by my award selections as well.
Conference Awards
ACC
Offensive Player of the Year: Tyrod Taylor-QB-Virginia Tech.
Runner Up: Russell Wilson-QB-NC State.
Defensive Player of the Year: Da’Quan Bowers-DE-Clemson.
Runner Up: Jayron Hosley-CB-Virginia Tech.
Coach of the Year: Jimbo Fisher-Florida State.
Runner Up: Ralph Friedgen-Maryland.
Most Surprising Team: Maryland.
Runner Up: NC State.
Most Disappointing Team: North Carolina.
Runner Up: Miami.
Best Moment: December 31st. Florida State beats South Carolina in the Chick-fil-A Bowl. This was a big game for the ACC. They haven’t had much success against that other major conference of the southeast area in recent years. This was a battle between the losers of the ACC title game and the SEC title game. ACC fans could therefore make the case that this was a matchup of the 2nd best teams from each conference. Also, Florida State—along with Miami—is one of the most important teams in the ACC. The program has declined over the last decade and the conference has gone down with it. This was a bounce back year for FSU. To top it all off, the Noles got to beat a certain SEC coaching legend (Steve Spurrier) in this one.
Worst Moment: September 6th through September 11th. Virginia Tech—easily the conference’s strongest team since the expansion from 9 teams to 12 teams—loses the big opener to Boise State on a national stage in their own back yard, and less than a week later, the Hokies lose at home to James Madison of the FCS. In a sense, this moment would linger on throughout the year, as VT went on to go through conference play undefeated and win the conference championship, before getting blown out by Stanford in the Orange Bowl.
Best Game: 3-way tie.
Week 9: FSU @ NC State. A big Thursday night game with major conference implications. NC State overcomes a 14-point deficit and hangs on to win 28-24.
Week 10: UNC @ FSU. A back and forth shootout won by the Heels, 37-35.
Week 12: NC State @ UNC. The Heels looked to play spoiler against their in-state rivals, but the Wolfpack hang on for a 29-25 win to stay alive in the hunt for the Atlantic Division Title.
Comments: As bad as the first two weeks of the season were for VT, in reality, the worst moment of the season for the ACC was the UNC fiasco. I decided not to go with it because it’s so hard to describe it as a “moment.” It felt more like a millennium. The case dragged on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on. I’m pretty sure a few of the suspended players remained in limbo throughout the season without ever being officially declared ineligible for good.
And it wasn’t just the fact that the team dealt with both an “agent violation” and a “cheating” scandal (or whatever it was) that involved two-dozen players at the same time. The reason it was so awful was that this team was absolutely stacked, and most of the guys effected by the sanctions were either stars, starters, or key backups. This team had more talent and experience on defense than any team in the last decade and they never even played a single down together as a unit this season. What a waste.
You can almost always make the case for Frank Beamer being the coach of the year in the ACC. You would have a particularly strong case this season after the way they responded to that miserable 0-2 start. By the way: who the hell scheduled a game with a small school from inside the state just 5 days after an exceedingly hyped season opener against Boise State in primetime? That’s just asking to be “App Stated.”
Wilson and Taylor were really close for Off POY. I went with Taylor because of his excellent 24-5 TD-INT ratio. Bowers was a runaway winner for Def POY, leading the nation in sacks with 15. Hosley led the nation with 9 picks and had a PR TD.
Big XII
Offensive Player of the Year: Justin Blackmon-WR-Oklahoma State.
Runner Up: Ryan Broyles-WR-Oklahoma.
Defensive Player of the Year: Von Miller-LB-Texas A&M.
Runner Up: Jamell Fleming-CB-Oklahoma.
Coach of the Year: Mike Gundy-Oklahoma State.
Runner Up: Mike Sherman-Texas A&M.
Most Surprising Team: Oklahoma State.
Runner Up: Texas A&M.
Most Disappointing Team: Texas.
Runner Up: Nebraska.
Best Moment: January 1st. The Sooners spank UConn in the Fiesta Bowl. Kind of a weak best moment, but this wasn’t a great year for the Big XII. Still, Oklahoma needed to win a BCS game, especially against an overmatched team like Connecticut. It was important that they win and win convincingly, and they were able to do that.
Worst Moment: September 25th. The roof caves in on the Longhorns, as Texas loses at home to UCLA, 34-12. While the Longhorns were not playing great going into this game, they were still 3-0, and nothing that had occurred so far hinted of what was to come. There was no slow and steady decline. It began with a total disaster, a hideous loss to a bad UCLA team at home, and they would go on to lose 7 of 9 games. Texas was the only program left that seemed to be truly immune from having a down year, but that belief was destroyed this season.
Best Game: 3-way tie.
Week 5: Texas A&M @ Oklahoma State. A Thursday night battle between a pair of surprising 3-0 teams still looking to prove themselves. Oklahoma State wins 38-35 on a 40-yard FG at the buzzer.
Week 10: Nebraska @ Iowa State. Could it happen again? No. Nebraska breaks up a 2-point try in overtime to hang on for a 31-30 win.
Week 13: Oklahoma @ Oklahoma State. Bedlam. With the Big XII South title on the line, the Sooners win another crazy game in this rivalry, 47-41.
Comments: In my opinion, the real worst moment of the year for the Big XII came before the season even began, when Nebraska and Colorado announced they would be leaving the conference following this season, and the remaining teams made the bizarre choice of staying together as a 10-team conference without a title game. But again, this really wasn’t one moment, as all of us who witnessed the grotesque summer of conference realignment can attest to.
Another awful moment was Nebraska’s pathetic effort in the Holiday Bowl against Washington, as they lost 19-7 to a 6-6 team who they had beaten 56-21 in Seattle earlier in the season. However, considering that it was Big Red’s last game as a member of the Big XII, it’s hard to say that it really had that much of an effect on the conference.
You might question how I can have Nebraska as the 2nd most disappointing team in the conference, after they went back to the conference title game ended up 10-4. And, after all, they were having to replace one of the most dominant defensive players in recent history. Well, the first thing to understand is that there really weren’t that many disappointing teams in the Big XII this season other than Texas. Also, I thought Nebraska could have easily gone undefeated in the regular season if they hadn’t dropped 15 passes against Texas and committed 200 penalties against A&M. Then there was that inexcusable, embarrassing performance against Washington in the Holliday Bowl.
You also have to add in the problems between head coach Bo Pelini and his QB; head coach Bo Pelini and administration; head coach Bo Pelini and his AD; and head coach Bo Pelini against several hundred other people. It’s most unfortunate because Pelini has turned the program around and made the Cornhuskers winners again.
I went with Ryan Broyles as runner up for Off POY over the QB’s from Oklahoma and Oklahoma State because he had a terrific year and deserved some recognition. I have the QB’s ranked ahead of him in the Brent Musburger standings because I place more importance on leading and winning for that award, and it is my opinion that QB’s have more of an influence on the game than receivers. So if it’s a tossup between a receiver and a QB, I’d usually go with the QB for the most outstanding player award. I think offensive and defensive player of the year awards were created so that non-QB’s could be rewarded. No, I’m kidding about that, but at least in the NFL you see the offensive player of the year awards going to running backs and wideouts more than you do the MVP awards.
Big East
Offensive Player of the Year: Geno Smith-QB-West Virginia.
Runner Up: Jordan Todman-RB-Connecticut.
Defensive Player of the Year: Lawrence Wilson-LB-Connecticut.
Runner Up: Johnny Patrick-CB-Louisville.
Coach of the Year: Randy Edsall-Connecticut.
Runner Up: Doug Marrone-Syracuse.
Most Surprising Team: Syracuse.
Runner Up: Louisville.
Most Disappointing Team: Cincinnati.
Runner Up: Rutgers.
Best Moment: November 27th. South Florida knocks off Miami on the road in OT. The Bulls have had big wins before, but many saw this as perhaps the biggest in their history. They had been 0-2 against Miami going into this game (having been outscored 58-17 and outgained 752-394) but they were up to the task this time.
Worst Moment: Tie (Let’s be honest: it’s tough to narrow it down to just one moment).
September 18th. Connecticut loses at Temple by the score of 30-16. They had lost 30-10 to Michigan in the opener and the loss to the Owls put them at 1-2. Of course, they would go on to win the Big East and play in a BCS game. But again, I’m not sure that’s necessarily a great thing for the conference.
December 28th. The Mountaineers fail to show up for Bill Stewart’s last game as head coach. West Virginia ended the regular season on a 4-game win streak to finish 9-3. But I guess they weren’t too excited to be playing in the Champs Sports Bowl, because they went down to NC State 23-7, and it looked like they thought it was a scrimmage in the first week of summer practice.
Best Game: Week 14: Connecticut @ South Florida. The Huskies drive for a late FG to win 19-16 and clinch the conference title and a BCS bid.
Comments: Well, we all know what was truly the worst moment for the Big East this season. It was also the worst moment in college football this season. It was the worst moment for college football in at least the last 10 years. It occurred on October 16th during the Rutgers-Army game in East Rutherford, when Scarlet Knights DT Eric LeGrand suffered an injury to his spine that left him paralyzed from the neck down. This is going to sound naive and maybe even hard to believe, but I honestly had gotten to the point where I never thought we would see another player paralyzed.
Don’t get me wrong, I thought the possibility existed that we might see a player die on the field, but I was worried about a hit to the head causing some sort of catastrophe like we’ve seen in boxing. I thought the days of players suffering fluke neck injuries and ending up paralyzed were over. Seeing the cart come onto the field and a player stabilized and lifted on a board onto the cart no longer scared me. It was routine. As soon as I saw that the player was conscious, I figured he would be fine because training staffs and medics are so well prepared to deal with that sort of thing today, and there have been so many advances in medicine and the treatment of spinal injuries.
But I was wrong, and obviously it was ridiculous to have thought that way. I tried to limit the “worst moments” to losses and that’s why I didn’t have this up there, but this was the worst moment in all of sports that I can think of in many, many years.
The moments didn’t get any better for the Big East following the end of the regular season. Connecticut failed to compete against Oklahoma in the Fiesta Bowl and they really didn’t look like they belonged. Then Randy Edsall dipped out on the Huskies following the loss, taking the head coaching job at Maryland mere hours later. He did not mention his coaching plans to the team after the game and did not accompany the team on the plane home. He reportedly called some players but made no formal goodbye. Edsall built the UConn program and had been in Storrs for 12 years. Weeks later a major booster asked the athletic program to give back a large amount of money he had donated to the school. The booster was unhappy with the hiring of Paul Pasqualoni to replace Edsall, and he stated that the only reason Edsall left was because he did not get along with the AD.
But the Connecticut controversy was nothing compared to the Pittsburgh coaching change debacle. After forcing out the Wannstash, Pitt hired Miami of Ohio coach Mike Haywood as his replacement. This was a questionable move to begin with and it didn’t take long for things to go from disappointment to disaster. Just two weeks after being hired as the new head coach at Pittsburgh, Haywood was arrested for felony domestic abuse and fired the next day. Doh! Ten days later the Panthers hired Tulsa coach Todd Graham. He has managed to last longer than Haywood.
If you’re surprised to see Geno Smith’s name next to “Offensive Player of the Year” don’t worry; I was too. But the guy was 2nd in the Big East in passing yards per game and TD’s, and he led the conference in completion percentage and QB rating. He had a 24-7 TD-INT ratio.
Big Ten
Offensive Player of the Year: Denard Robinson-QB-Michigan.
Runner Up: Mikel Leshoure-RB-Illinois.
Defensive Player of the Year: Ryan Kerrigan-DE-Purdue.
Runner Up: Micah Hyde-CB-Iowa.
Coach of the Year: Mark Dantonio-Michigan State.
Runner Up: Bret Bielema-Wisconsin.
Most Surprising Team: Michigan State.
Runner Up: Illinois.
Most Disappointing Team: Iowa.
Runner Up: Penn State.
Best Moment: January 4th. The Buckeyes snap the SEC skid (barley). Ohio State has lost some big bowl games over the last few years, but they certainly looked like the experienced team that they were in this year’s Sugar Bowl. By contrast, this was the biggest game Arkansas had played in under Bobby Petrino. The Hogs played like a jittery and unprepared team during the entire first half of the game. There were at least a half a dozen brutal drops, and as many as 15 catchable balls that were not reeled in. Surely the Buckeyes deserve a lot of credit for hanging on and getting the win. But this was certainly one of those games where you can say that the losing team (Arkansas) “should” have won. Late in the game, it was more about the plays that Arkansas didn’t make than the plays that Ohio State did make.
In the end, the Hogs choked. It’s as simple as that. But the Buckeyes won. Ohio State had gotten a rather large monkey off of their backs the year before when they beat Oregon in the Rose Bowl. That ended a lengthy skid of BCS bowl defeats. They got another monkey off of their backs this year by beating an SEC team in a BCS bowl.
Worst Moment: January 1st. On 1/1/11 the Big Ten (or Eleven…or I guess 12 now) goes big zero. The first day of 2011 was not a good one for the Big Ten. You know, in the end, it wasn’t an absolutely awful bowl season for the Big Ten. The best team in the conference—Ohio State—beat an SEC team in a BCS bowl, Iowa got an unexpected win over a 10-2 Missouri team, and Illinois won easily over Baylor to finish with a winning record. 3-5 is not a good record, but at least the wins that they did get were fairly meaningful.
Unfortunately for the Legends and Leaders, all 5 losses occurred during about an 8-hour period, on the biggest TV day of the entire college football season. The day began with Northwestern losing (as expected) to Texas Tech in the Ticket City Bowl. This one actually could have been much worse, as the Red Raiders led by 22 at one point in the second half, before the Wildcats cut the deficit to 7 points twice in the 4th quarter. The final score was 45-38.
Things really went downhill when the Capital One Bowl began. Alabama humiliated Michigan State, who came into the game 11-1 and co-champions of the Big Ten. The Tide led 28-0 at the half and scored the first 49 points in the game before Michigan State finally got on the board with 5 minutes left. Bama won it 49-7, outgaining the Spartans 546-171. This was a very bad loss for the Big Ten because it did a lot to delegitimize Michigan State as a truly great team.
As Bama was whipping up on Sparty, another team from the Great Lakes State was being taken to the woodshed. This beating would be just about as humiliating as the one Bama put on Michigan State. The Michigan Wolverines, with all of their history and tradition, went up against an upstart Mississippi State team in the Gator Bowl and got absolutely raped. Michigan was on top 14-10 at the end of an exciting 1st quarter, but the Maroon Dogs would outscore Rich Rod’s boys 42-0 the rest of the way, putting a 52-14 exclamation point on that slimy snake’s tenure in Ann Arbor.
Penn State would also go down to an SEC team that day, as the Gators beat Joe Pa and his men 37-24 in the Outback Bowl. This one was actually closer than the final score indicated. Penn State led by 7 with about 20 minutes left, but Florida outscored them 20-0 over the remaining time. The Nittany Lions actually outgained Florida, but they committed 5 turnovers, including a pick-six that put the game away with less than a minute to go. While this loss may have expected, I thought it was a killer because it was certainly not a mismatch.
That made the Big Ten oh-for-four on the day and 0-3 against the SEC, having been outscored 138-45 in those 3 games. The conference had one last shot to salvage something from New Year’s Day, but once again they would be disappointed. Wisconsin—11-1 and a co-champion of the conference—faced TCU from the Mountain West Conference in the Rose Bowl later that afternoon. The Horned Frogs triumphed 21-19. The Big Ten finished New Year’s Day 0-5.
There’s no shame in losing to an undefeated TCU team, but there’s still something a bit different about losing to a team from a non-BCS conference. Plus, it was another BCS loss for the Big Ten. Two of the three co-champions of the conference had lost on the day, with Michigan State losing 49-7 and the Badgers falling to a team from the Mountain West. It was a most humbling opening day of the year for the Big Ten.
Best Game: Week 10: Illinois @ Michigan. The Wolverines outlast Illinois in the highest scoring game of the year, winning 69-67 in triple OT.
Comments: I guess the day that the NCAA suspended all of those Ohio State players for the first 5 games of next year was a bad moment as well. But again, off the field.
You may be surprised not to see Michigan as one of my most disappointing teams, but I really was not expecting much from them this season. I thought Iowa was one of the most disappointing teams in the entire country. And Penn State was noticeably average this season. Michigan was basically the same as they were throughout Rich Rod’s tenure.
Speaking of Michigan, I had a hard time giving the Off POY award to Robinson, even though his numbers made him the obvious choice. My issue with Robinson is over his toughness/durability. Did he ever play a single game this season start to finish? I know for certain he came out of every Michigan game that I saw. But there was no getting around it. He was the top offensive player. He had just 4 fewer rushing yards than Leshoure while also throwing for over 2500 yards and 18 TD’s. He had just 200 fewer passing yards than Terrelle Pryor on 32 less attempts, while gaining 952 more yards on the ground than the Buckeye QB.
Conference USA
Offensive Player of the Year: Damaris Johnson-WR-Tulsa.
Runner Up: Jeffery Godfrey-QB-Central Florida.
Defensive Player of the Year: Vinny Curry-DE-Marshall.
Runner Up: Bruce Miller-DE-Central Florida.
Coach of the Year: George O’Leary-Central Florida.
Runner Up: Todd Graham-Tulsa.
Most Surprising Team: East Carolina.
Runner Up: Tulane.
Most Disappointing Team: Houston.
Runner Up: SMU.
Best Moment: December 31st. Conference champ Central Florida knocks off Georgia in the Liberty Bowl. This was a tough one for me personally, but it was a big win for UCF and Conference USA.
Worst Moment: December 30th. Conference title game loser SMU loses at home to Army in the Armed Forces Bowl. This was pathetic. I hate to be so hard on the Mustangs, as they have only recently been able to compete after the death penalty ruling back in the 80’s. But then again, these guys should still be hungry, regardless of the fact that they were coming off of a disappointing loss in the conference title game. I don’t know how a team that put up 24 on TCU could only score 14 on Army. Now, playing at home in a bowl game is a bit of a double edged sword. For one thing, it has to feel less special and nothing at all like a “reward.” Plus, when players have time off at home during the holidays they tend to get a bit soft. However, when you have more talent and you’re playing at home in a bowl game it should be enough to win.
Best Game: 5-way tie.
Week 1: Tulsa @ East Carolina. A typical Conference USA shootout. It’s a brutal way for Tulsa to start the season, and a great way for ECU to start the Ruffin McNeil era, as the Pirates win on a Hail Mary on the last play of the game, 51-49.
Week 6: ECU @ Southern Miss. A huge early C-USA East battle turns into one of the wildest, weirdest games of the season, as ECU hangs on for a 44-43 win.
Week 9: UAB @ Southern Miss. An unexpectedly entertaining shootout between 2-5 UAB and 5-2 Southern Miss. The Blazers go for 2 in double OT to stun the Golden Eagles, 50-49.
Week 13: Southern Miss @ Tulsa. Another shootout in the C-USA, this one in the regular season finale, with Tulsa winning it 56-50.
Week 13: SMU @ East Carolina. A shootout in the regular season finale that went into OT. SMU pulled it out in overtime, winning 45-38 to claim the C-USA West Division title.
Comments: Yes, I realize that Tulane won 4 games, but that’s twice as many wins as I expected. I know SMU made it to the conference title game but a 7-7 season was certainly a disappointment when they had most of last year’s team back. And two of their losses were two service academy teams. I hate to be hard on them, but if this season wasn’t a setback it was certainly a disappointment. I don’t like to be tough on Houston either because their season was derailed by the season ending injury to stud senior QB Case Keenum. But they had 14 starters back from a 10-win team and ended up having their first losing season since 2003.
MAC
Offensive Player of the Year: Chad Spann-RB-NIU.
Runner Up: Chandler Harnish-QB-NIU.
Defensive Player of the Year: Evan Harris-LB-Miami (Ohio).
Runner Up: Sean Baker-FS-Ball State.
Coach of the Year: Jerry Kill-Northern Illinois.
Runner Up: Mike Haywood-Miami (Ohio).
Most Surprising Team: Miami (Ohio).
Runner Up: Toledo.
Most Disappointing Team: Ball State.
Runner Up: Kent State.
Best Moment: January 6th. Surprise conference champ Miami of Ohio beats Middle Tennessee State in the GoDaddy.com Bowl. With NIU getting upset by Miami of Ohio in the MAC title game, I thought it was good for the conference that the surprise champs were able to win their bowl game. Maybe beating a 6-6 team from the SBC isn’t a big deal, but beating them is much better than losing to them. And it was nice that they were able to win despite being abandoned by their head coach prior to the game. Mike Haywood then added insult to injury by putting a cloud over his former team with his arrest on felony domestic violence charges. It was good to see the team win without him.
Worst Moment: December 3rd. Northern Illinois gets knocked off by Miami of Ohio in the conference title game. For the 2nd time in the last 3 years, a team with an 8-0 record in conference that had dominated the rest of the league during the regular season and came into the MAC title game nationally ranked, got upset in fluky fashion by a surprise team that was somewhat lucky to be there. For many reasons, NIU’s loss to Miami (OH) was nowhere near as bad as Ball State’s loss to Buffalo in 2008, but it still had to be disappointing for the conference.
The one thing that actually was worse about this year’s upset was that while BSU fell down early to Buffalo and never really came close to winning, the Huskies had this game won until an outrageously fluky play kept Miami of Ohio alive with a minute and a half to play. They would score the winning touchdown two plays later. Oh, and Jerry Kill abandoned the team before their bowl game, leaving both the winner and the loser of the MAC title game without their coaches in their bowl games.
Best Game: Conference Championship Game: Miami (Ohio) vs. Northern Illinois. A disappointing result for the conference, but a good game with an exciting ending, as Miami of Ohio stuns NIU, 26-21, to win the conference title.
Comments: Maybe I’m projecting what my feelings would be if I were a fan of the MAC when I say that Miami beating NIU was the worst moment. Maybe they would say it was a good moment because it showed they had more than one good team. If this is the case, then their worst moments came during the period of time between the conference title game and the bowl wins.
First, Western Michigan (6-6, 5-3 in conference) and Temple (8-4, 5-3 in conference with a win over Connecticut) were the only bowl eligible FBS teams who did not receive a bowl invitation. Then on December 5th, less than 48 hours after his team was upset by Miami in the MAC Championship Game, Jerry Kill took the head coaching job at Minnesota, a team the Huskies beat by 11 points on the road in week 4 of the season. Kill announced he would not coach NIU in their bowl game. On December 12th, the conference’s best coach, Al Golden, left Temple after taking the program from 0-11 to back to back 8+ win seasons in 5 years, to take the head coaching job at Miami. On December 15th, Mike Haywood took the head coaching job at Pittsburgh, announcing that he would not coach his MAC champion RedHawks in their bowl game. Finally, on December 31st, Haywood was arrested for domestic abuse and fired by Pittsburgh the following day.
I assume that the MAC schools and the SBC schools make money from their football programs, but I think it’s ridiculous to have two conferences full of teams who are little more than a minor league system from which bigger programs can pluck coaches. Those schools really ought to be in the FCS. I’m sorry but I seriously doubt that Central Michigan and Troy would dominate Georgia Southern, Appalachian State, and Montana on a yearly basis. I guess the losses in TV money would be really bad for those schools if they weren’t in the FBS, but I don’t think that’s a reason to have a bunch of teams playing on a level where they clearly don’t belong.
Maybe you weren’t expecting much from Ball State this season but I was. They had 19 starters back, including RB Miquale Lewis (remember him from ’08?), and they seemingly had 4 automatic wins with home games against SE Missouri State, Liberty, Eastern Michigan, and Akron. They only went 2-2 in those games. Stan Parish was let go after leading the team to a 6-19 record over two seasons (his record as head coach in the FBS is now 8-89-1) but replacing him with Pete Lembo hasn’t gotten anyone fired up in Muncie. Lembo has never played or coached in any capacity at the FBS level, and his Elon Phoenix never made it past the 1st round of the FCS playoffs. I have a feeling that 12-0 start/#12 ranking in the polls is going to look weirder than Steven Tyler 10 years from now.
Mountain West
Offensive Player of the Year: Andy Dalton-QB-TCU.
Runner Up: Ryan Lindley-QB-San Diego State.
Defensive Player of the Year: Andrew Rich-FS-BYU.
Runner Up: Miles Burris-LB-San Diego State.
Coach of the Year: Brady Hoke-San Diego State.
Runner Up: Gary Patterson-TCU.
Most Surprising Team: San Diego State.
Runner Up: Air Force.
Most Disappointing Team: BYU.
Runner Up: Utah.
Best Moment: January 1st. TCU beats Wisconsin in the Rose Bowl to finish 13-0. Obviously this was a huge win for TCU and the conference. It was huge for the conference, as 3 Mountain West teams have now finished undefeated seasons by beating BCS teams in BCS bowls (Utah twice, TCU once). It was even bigger for TCU, as they had finally won a BCS game and finished an undefeated season, after losing their first game in a BCS bowl the year before.
Worst Moment: November 13th. Utah gets whipped 28-3 by Notre Dame. This sort of result would have been disappointing regardless of the circumstances. What made the result especially upsetting was that Utah had just been destroyed by fellow MWC team TCU the week before for their first loss of the year. Getting crushed by a mediocre ND team for their 2nd loss just a week later took something away from TCU’s win.
Best Game: Week 11: San Diego State @ TCU. Undefeated TCU receives a bigger test than expected against upstart San Diego State, and has to hang on for a 40-35 win.
Comments: I have to think that the real worst moment for the MWC this year was whenever they realized that they were losing all 3 of their football powerhouse schools: Utah (to the Pac-10?); TCU (to the Big East?); and BYU (to Independent status: AKA, a place that quasi-religious schools go when they realize that they can’t cut it with the big boys anymore). Yes, they’re getting Boise State but in a very real sense the Mountain West Conference as we knew it no longer exists. The worst part of it all is that they seemed reasonably close to becoming another BCS conference. They had already won half the battle, as many fans, analysts, and others around the country felt that the Mountain West was no worse than the Big East. And now it’s completely blown up.
Okay, naming Utah as the 2nd most disappointing team may seem uncalled for but it was my only choice. There are only 9 teams in the conference to begin with, and we only expected decent seasons out of 5 of them. Plus, they did lose by 40 to TCU at home, by 25 to ND, and by 23 to Boise State, so they weren’t as competitive against their stronger opponents this season. And their 9-game bowl win streak was snapped.
Pac-10
Offensive Player of the Year: Andrew Luck-QB-Stanford.
Runner Up: LaMichael James-RB-Oregon.
Defensive Player of the Year: Cliff Harris-CB-Oregon.
Runner Up: Mason Foster-LB-Washington.
Coach of the Year: Jim Harbaugh-Sanford.
Runner Up: Chip Kelly-Oregon.
Most Surprising Team: Stanford.
Runner Up: Oregon.
Most Disappointing Team: Arizona.
Runner Up: California.
Best Moment: January 3rd. Stanford wastes Virginia Tech in the Orange Bowl. This was obviously a big game for Stanford but it was also big for the conference because it gave them 2 legitimately great teams. Stanford’s easy win over VT certified Stanford as one of the best teams in the country.
Worst Moment: September 17th. Cal allows 52 and loses by 3 TD’s to Nevada. Nevada ended up having a great year, but this was still a bit embarrassing for the conference.
Best Game: Tie.
Week 6: USC @ Stanford. Stanford Indians stun the Trojans for the 3rd time in 4 seasons, winning 37-35 on a last second field goal.
Week 12: Washington @ Cal. Washington goes for the win and gets it, 16-13, to keep their bowl hopes alive and end Cal’s season.
Comments: Obviously, the worst moment of the year for the Pac-10 was the day that the NCAA announced cruel and unusual punishments against the conference’s flagship program, USC. The extent of the damage caused by that ruling will not be known for some years to come. But that was off the field.
Of course, Oregon’s loss in the national title game was also a disappointment, but it wasn’t that big of a deal since they played well and the conference doesn’t have a history of flopping in big games. Stanford’s win also helped take away some of the sting from that loss. Harbaugh’s exit from Stanford certainly hurt, but surely Luck’s surprising decision to stay in school softened that blow.
Some would raise an eyebrow at Stanford and Oregon being the most surprising teams but they were really the only choices. And they make sense. Yes, Stanford had Toby Gerhart last year and won 8 games, but that is light years away from going 12-1 and winning the Orange Bowl. Oregon was ranked high in the preseason polls, but remember most people thought the surprising loss of QB Jeremiah Masoli would have a bigger effect than it did. And no one really knew what to expect from USC, and Oregon would have to play at the Trojans, at Cal, and at Oregon State. Speaking of USC, they would be the hands down most disappointing team if we factored in the sanctions and the overall fall of that program in the last 18 months. But on the field they weren’t much worse than I expected.
SEC
Offensive Player of the Year: Cameron Newton-QB-Auburn.
Runner Up: Randall Cobb-WR-Kentucky.
Defensive Player of the Year: Nick Fairley-DT-Auburn.
Runner Up: Justin Houston-LB-Georgia.
Coach of the Year: Gene Chizik-Auburn.
Runner Up: Dan Mullen-Mississippi State.
Most Surprising Team: Auburn.
Runner Up: Mississippi State.
Most Disappointing Team: Florida.
Runner Up: Georgia.
Best Moment: January 10th. Auburn gets by Oregon in the National Championship Game to finish 14-0 and win the 5th straight BCS title for the SEC. This was really big because other than Auburn it was a bit of a down year for the conference. In a year when powerhouses Florida and Alabama were both down, the streak of national titles was extended.
Worst Moment: September 4th. Mississippi gives up 49 points and loses at home to FCS Jacksonville State in double overtime. This really was a horrific and embarrassing loss. If an SEC team had ever lost to an FCS or Division I-AA team before, I can’t remember it.
Best Game: Week 13: Auburn @ Alabama. Auburn comes back from a 24-point deficit to shock their arch rivals and keep the dream season alive with a 28-27 win.
Comments: Without question, the worst moment of the year was really the long, long moment that began with the breaking of the story concerning Cameron Newton’s father and Mississippi State. Although Newton ended up remaining eligible (somehow) and the Tigers eventually won it all, this was still a major ordeal for the conference. Following years of relatively few NCAA issues, while many other programs around the country ran afoul of the rules, the SEC found itself in the worst kind of trouble: a player reportedly sold to the highest bidder.
It’s one thing for a player to take money from an agent or even for a program to be caught assisting one of its players while he was still a member of the team. It’s way, way worse to be accused of paying a player to come to your school. And this wasn’t just one SEC team. 3 different SEC schools were involved in the scandal, including a team that had won two of the past 4 national championships (Florida) and the only team that still had a chance to win the title this season (Auburn). It was not a good scene. It also came on the heels of infractions at Alabama, Tennessee, and Georgia. All and all, the SEC gave detractors plenty of material to work with in the years to come.
Randall Cobb’s selection at the runner up for Off POY may seem a bit random but it’s justifiable. He’s a great player on a middling team. He’s the most versatile player in the conference and one of the most valuable. This season he had 84 catches for 1017 yards and 7 TD’s; ran 55 times for 424 yards (7.71 average) and 5 TD; completed 5 of 10 passes for 3 TD and no picks; scored a pair of 2-point conversions; had a PR TD; and finished 4th in the SEC in yards from scrimmage and 1st in all-purpose yards.
Sun Belt
Offensive Player of the Year: Jerrel Jernigan-WR-Troy.
Runner Up: Lance Dunbar-RB-North Texas.
Defensive Player of the Year: Jonathan Massaquoi-DE-Troy.
Runner Up: Jamari Lattimore-DE-Middle Tennessee State.
Coach of the Year: Mario Cristobal-Florida International.
Runner Up: Rick Stockstill-Middle Tennessee State.
Most Surprising Team: Louisiana-Monroe.
Runner Up: Florida International.
Most Disappointing Team: Middle Tennessee State.
Runner Up: North Texas.
Best Moment: December 26th. FIU bests Toledo in the Little Caesars Pizza Bowl. Any time an SBC team wins a bowl game it’s a fairly big deal. But this was extra special because it was Florida International, a team which has only had a football program for 9 years. This was their first ever bowl game, and for a matchup of a MAC team and an SBC team, it was pretty damn entertaining.
Worst Moment: September 18th. North Texas gets shutout 24-0 by Army. It’s hard to imagine now, but in the first few years of the Sun Belt Conference’s time in the FBS, North Texas was its best team. In fact, the Mean Green won the conference championship and the automatic bowl bid in the SBC’s first four years as a major football conference (2001-2004). Since the end of that run, North Texas has never won more than 3 games in a season. They were supposed to be back this year but it didn’t happen. NT’s hopes took a hit when they lost by a point to Rice at home in week 2. But reality was truly forced home the next week when they were blanked by Army, 24-0. Army turned out to be better than they have been in many years. Still, this was a major setback for North Texas, who ended up going 3-9 for their 6th consecutive season with 3 wins or less.
Best Game: Week 14: Middle Tennessee State @ Florida International. The Blue Raiders upset conference champion FIU, 28-27, in season finale to get bowl eligible.
Comments: The SBC had a bad moment before the year. The suspension of Dwight Dasher was a blow to Middle Tennessee State and the conference, as it derailed the season of the best team and the conference’s best player. This helps explain why I have MTS as my most disappointing team in the conference and also have Rick Stockstill as my runner up for COY. The Blue Raiders were expected to match last year’s 10-win campaign, but Dasher missed the first 4 games and never found himself. He was basically horrible all season. This was a lot for Stockstill to deal with. Despite the disappointment, he was able to rally his man to a 6-6 regular season and a bowl game.
WAC
Offensive Player of the Year: Kellen Moore-QB-Boise State.
Runner Up: Colin Kaepernick-QB-Nevada.
Defensive Player of the Year: Aaron Brown-LB-Hawaii.
Runner Up: Aaron Lavarias-DE-Idaho.
Coach of the Year: Chris Ault-Nevada.
Runner Up: Chris Petersen-Boise State.
Most Surprising Team: Hawaii.
Runner Up: Nevada.
Most Disappointing Team: Fresno State.
Runner Up: Louisiana Tech.
Best Moment: September 6th. Boise State gets a dramatic victory over Virginia Tech on opening night. This was big because there was so much hype for this matchup and Boise State came into it with so much momentum. It was a bit of an all or nothing game for the Broncos right off the bat. If they lost, their chances of breaking into the national championship game as a BCS buster would be out the window. If they won, it was not at all a stretch to say that they should go undefeated without that much trouble.
Worst Moment: Tie.
December 18th. Fresno State gets worked by NIU in the Humanitarian Bowl. This was just a bit embarrassing. You never want to get blown out by a MAC team, even one who had been as good as NIU during the regular season. Fresno State’s only losses in the conference had been to co-champions Hawaii, Boise State, and Nevada. They had beaten Cincinnati and Illinois. To be fair, they were 1.5 point underdogs, but it’s hard to explain how they got outgained by almost 150 yards, got more than doubled up in 1st downs, and lost 40-17 to the runner up from the MAC.
December 24th. Hawaii gets rocked by Tulsa in the Hawaii Bowl on their home field. Talk about embarrassing. Remember, Hawaii is playing on their home field, with their very energetic home crowd in attendance. Tulsa was 9-3, but Hawaii was 10-3 and favored by 10 points. Tulsa jumped out to a 24-7 lead, but Hawaii pulled within 6 points of the lead twice in the 2nd half, and it really didn’t turn into a rout until Tulsa closed the game on a 28-7 run. It was still fairly ugly throughout, as Hawaii threw 5 picks and turned it over 7 times, and by the time it was over they had lost it 62-35.
Best Game: Week 13: Boise State @ Nevada. Boise State’s hopes of crashing the national championship game come to a stunning end on a cold night in Reno, as the Wolf Pack come back to trip the Broncos in OT, 34-31, in perhaps the best game of the season.
Comments: I thought about calling Brotzman’s choke the conference’s worst moment. In many ways it was. Boise State’s attempt to crash the BCS title game was really the only reason for anyone to pay attention to the WAC. And Brotzman’s miss not only ended the dreams of a national title, it knocked the Broncos out of a BCS game altogether, meaning a dramatic loss in revenue for the school and the conference. Really, the only way you could see it as not a total negative would be if Nevada is able to maintain their current level and become a consistent force based on the exposure they got from this game. That doesn’t seem too likely. However, Boise State is leaving the WAC, so maybe it will eventually work out for the best for the conference, as Nevada will be the most legit program remaining.
National Awards
The Brent Musburger Most Outstanding Football Player Award
Winner: Cameron Newton-QB-Auburn.
Runner Up: Andrew Luck-QB-Stanford.
Third Place: Justin Blackmon-WR-Oklahoma State.
Fourth Place: Nick Fairley-DT-Auburn.
Fifth Place: LaMichael James-RB-Oregon.
Sixth Place: Kellen Moore-QB-Boise State.
Seventh Place: Colin Kaepernick-QB-Nevada.
Eighth Place: Denard Robinson-QB-Michigan.
Ninth Place: Andy Dalton-QB-TCU.
Tenth Place: Darron Thomas-QB-Oregon.
Eleventh Place: Landry Jones-QB-Oklahoma.
Twelfth Place: Brandon Weeden-QB-Oklahoma State.
Comments: I was not as happy with my Musburger award ranking this year as I was last year. The reason is the obvious lack of variety. Last year I had 5 QB, 4 RB, a WR, a DT, and a CB in my top 12. This year I have 9 QB, 1 DT, 1 WR, and 1 RB. But the reason I have so many QB’s this year is that there just weren’t that many stellar seasons turned in by RB’s and WR’s. At least the 3 non-QB’s in my top 12 were all in the top 5. And it’s hard to argue with Newton and Luck as the top 2.
The Christian Okoye Offensive Player of the Year Award
Winner: Justin Blackmon-WR-Oklahoma State.
Runner Up: LaMichael James-RB-Oregon.
The Doug Atkins Defensive Player of the Year Award
Winner: Nick Fairley-DT-Auburn.
Runner Up: Da’Quan Bowers-DE-Clemson.
The Tom Flores Coach of the Year Award
Winner: Jim Harbaugh-Stanford.
Runner Up: Gene Chizik-Auburn.
The Herschel Walker Freshman Player of the Year Award
Winner: Aaron Murray-QB-Georgia.
Runner Up: Ronnie Hillman-RB-San Diego State.
The Bernie Kosar Quarterback of the Year Award
Winner: Andrew Luck-Stanford.
Runner Up: Kellen Moore-Boise State.
The Bo Jackson Running Back of the Year Award
Winner: LaMichael James-Oregon.
Runner Up: DeMarco Murray-Oklahoma.
The Sterling Sharpe Wide Receiver of the Year Award
Winner: Justin Blackmon-Oklahoma State.
Runner Up: Ryan Broyles-Oklahoma.
The Brent Jones Tight End of the Year Award
Winner: Michael Egnew-Missouri.
Runner Up: DJ Williams-Arkansas.
The Jerome Brown Defensive Lineman of the Year Award
Winner: Nick Fairley-DT-Auburn.
Runner Up: Da’Quan Bowers-DE-Clemson.
The Darryl Talley Linebacker of the Year Award
Winner: Justin Houston-Georgia.
Runner Up: Von Miller-Texas A&M.
The Scott Case Defensive Back of the Year Award
Winner: Cliff Harris-CB-Oregon.
Runner Up: Ahmad Black-SS-Florida.
The Mike Cofer Place Kicker of the Year Award
Winner: Alex Henry-Nebraska.
Runner Up: Blair Walsh-Georgia.
The Sean Landeta Punter of the Year Award
Winner: Quinn Sharp-Oklahoma State.
Runner Up: Drew Butler-Georgia.
Most Surprising Team: Oklahoma State.
Runner Up: Stanford.
Most Disappointing Team: Texas.
Runner Up: Florida.
Best Game of the Year: Tie.
Week 13: Auburn @ Alabama.
Week 13: Boise State @ Nevada.
These were easily the two best games of the year, and it’s near impossible to rank one over the other.
Best Regular Season Inter-confernce Game: Week 1: Boise State vs. Virginia Tech. The magnitude of this contest has been explained several times already in this post.
Runner Up: Week 3: Notre Dame @ Michigan State. This has always been an interesting rivalry, and this year’s version was a great one, as the teams traded blows for 4 quarters and went to overtime tied at 28-28. But this game separates itself from many other great games because of the call by Mike Dantonio on 4th and 14 from the 29 with his team down 3 in the first overtime session. The Spartans lined up as if to try a 46-yard FG to tie it, but instead they ran a fake. The play clock ran all the way down to zero, but no delay of game penalty was called. Punter Aaron Bates was the holder, and he got the snap and stood up and waited for Charlie Gantt to come open from the right end position. The ND player who was supposed to be covering Gantt was taken out by the guy who was supposed to catch the ball on the play. That worked out perfectly for the Spartans, as Gantt was wide open and he made the catch and went untouched for a 29-yard game winning touchdown.
Best Bowl Game: BCS National Championship Game: Oregon vs. Auburn. As everyone knows by now, you’re just not going to get a well played game in the BCS NC because there’s simply too much time off between the final week of the regular season and the final bowl game. But at least this was one was competitive and compelling and it went down to the final play of the game.
Runner Up: Sugar Bowl: Ohio State vs. Arkansas. As an SEC fan, I hated this game, but it was pretty damn entertaining. Ohio State owned the 1st half but in the end Arkansas should have come out on top. They just choked.
Worst Bowl Game: Champs Sports Bowl: West Virginia vs. NC State. Trash. A boring matchup of middling teams, including one (West Virginia) that basically went at about 60% to 70% at their most energetic moments in this game. It looked like the Mountaineers were playing the last preseason game before an NFL season.
Runner Up: BBVA Compass Bowl: Pittsburgh vs. Kentucky. More trash. Two boring, middling teams, including one (Kentucky) that was without their QB after he got arrested during the time off between the final regular season game and this very late bowl game. And this game was never competitive.
Comments: I picked Luck and Moore for the QB award based on their skills as passing QB’s. I mentioned how Off POY awards are often used to recognize skill position players rather than QB’s, and Justin Blackmon needed to win that award. The guy had an amazing season. Lest you think I’m favoring my Bulldogs with my selection of Aaron Murray as freshman of the year, note that he threw for 3049 yards, completed 61.1% of his passes, posted a 24-8 TD-INT ratio, ran for 4 scores, and ranked 14th in the country in QB rating playing against SEC defenses.
2010 All-Horse Collar Team
First Team
Offense
QB: Cameron Newton-Auburn
RB: LaMichael James-Oregon
RB: DeMarco Murray-Oklahoma
RB: Kendall Hunter-Oklahoma State
WR: Justin Blackmon-Oklahoma State
WR: Ryan Broyles-Oklahoma
TE: Michael Egnew-Missouri
OL: Stanford
PK: Blair Walsh-Georgia
KR: Eric Page-Toledo
Defense
DE: Da’Quan Bowers-Clemson
DE: Ryan Kerrigan-Purdue
DT: Nick Fairley-Auburn
DT: Sam Acho-Texas
LB: Justin Houston-Georgia
LB: Von Miller-Texas A&M
LB: Luke Kuechly-Boston College
CB: Cliff Harris-Oregon
CB: Jayron Hosley-Virginia Tech
SS: Ahmad Black-Florida
FS: Robert Lester-Alabama
P: Drew Butler-Georgia
PR: Cliff Harris-Oregon
2nd Team
Offense
QB: Andrew Luck-Stanford
RB: Mikel Leshoure-Illinois
RB: Mark Ingram-Alabama
WR: AJ Green-Georgia
WR: Alshon Jeffery-South Carolina
WR: Titus Young-Boise State
TE: DJ Williams-Arkansas
OL: Oklahoma State
PK: Alex Henery-Nebraska
KR: Nick Williams-Connecticut
Defense
DE: Bruce Miller-Central Florida
DE: Brandon Jenkins-Florida State
DT: JJ Watt-Wisconsin
DT: Jared Crick-Nebraska
LB: Nate Irving-NC State
LB: Victor Aiyewa-Washington
LB: Danny Trevathan-Kentucky
CB: Greg Reid-Florida State
CB: David Garrett-Kansas State
SS: Mana Silva-Hawaii
FS: Andrew Rich-BYU
P: Quinn Sharp-Oklahoma State
PR: Patrick Peterson-LSU
Comments: Recall that my All-Horse Collar teams lean more towards who I think the best player is than the other awards. This helps explain why Butler and Walsh are 1st team special teamers, and Ingram, Green, and Reid make the 2nd team despite not having the best statistical seasons. The awards ended up being a bit redundant this year because there were so many less great options to choose from. For the offensive lines I look at pass protection, rushing game, success on 3rd and 4th down, red zone success, and offensive penalties. It’s pretty unscientific. I do find it interesting that Stanford has been my 1st team offensive line each of the last two years.
20 Memorable Moments (in no particular order)
1. Boise State tops Virginia Tech.
2. Virginia Tech falls to James Madison.
3. Mississippi loses to Jacksonville State.
4. Texas goes down to UCLA.
5. Arkansas chokes vs. Bama.
6. Auburn comeback vs. Bama.
7. National Championship Game.
8. No whistle play late in the NCG.
9. Brotzman and the Broncos go down in Reno.
10. Miles eats grass and leads LSU over Bama.
11. Nebraska vs. Washington x 2.
12. Tennessee’s celebration halted x 2.
13. The year of the service academies.
14. Arizona loses to ASU on extra points.
15. Oklahoma State's "team INT" in the Bedlam game.
16. Arkansas chokes vs. Ohio State.
17. Big Ten goes big zero (for five) on the 1st.
18. Michigan State fake punt for the win vs. the Irish.
19. Miami of Ohio’s pass through the gauntlet against NIU.
20. ECU’s Hail Mary winner in the opener.
20 Worst Moments (in no particular order)
1. USC put in solitary/possessions confiscated/family deported.
2. UNC’s season in limbo.
3. AJ Green’s jersey.
4. Ohio State tattoos.
5. TCU left out in the cold again.
6. Notre Dame filming travesty.
7. Rutgers tragedy.
8. Salute penalty ruins Cuse vs. KSU.
9. Newton and son.
10. Urban Meyer channeling his inner Brett Favre.
11. The mess that is the Iowa program.
12. BYU gets help in the replay booth.
13. Temple doesn’t get the invite.
14. Conference realignment nonsense.
15. Coaches slithering and stabbing.
16. Rich Rod cries and sings “You lift me up!”
17. Ron Franklin fired for being a dick.
18. Gene Chizik claim’s god on Auburn’s side.
19. The media’s Boise State agenda.
20. Football at Wrigley Field.
