Fourth and inches … (game week of Dec 5, 2009)

By Todd Erickson  |   Saturday, December 05, 2009  |  Comments( 0 )

College Football
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Ranking the best six coaching vacancies … 1. Notre Dame. Tradition, facilities, respected academic institution, a hefty budget, commitment to win it all, exclusive NBC television contract, and easier access to the BCS than any other program.

2. Virginia. Top-notch academic reputation, ACC affiliation guarantees solid schedule, fantastic recruiting market in DC/Maryland/Virginia, one of the best looking uniforms in college football, and nowhere to go but up for a new head coach.

3. Louisville. Big East affiliation guarantees solid schedule along with annual instate rivalry game vs SEC’s Kentucky, solid facilities with commitment to continue upgrading, only a few years removed from national championship conversation, Johnny U’s alma mater.

4. Kansas. Big 12 Conference affiliation guarantees solid schedule, the softer Northern Division competition provides better chance of playing for conference title, the Jayhawk basketball program keeps fans happy when the football program struggles.

5. UNLV. Mountain West Conference affiliation guarantees a fairly good schedule with perennial losses to BYU, Utah and TCU. Consistently competitive basketball program keeps fans happy when the football program struggles (which is an annual occurrence) consistent flow of top entertainment on the Strip, Siegfried & Roy retired, cheap eats in the casinos, nowhere to go but up for a new head coach.

6. San Jose State. Steve DeBerg and Jeff Garcia played QB for the Spartans, two Dicks coached there—Dick Vermiel and Dick Tomey, beautiful climate, 30 miles from San Francisco, close access to two Valleys--Silicon and Napa, weak Western Athletic Conference schedule should guarantee bowl eligibility every year.

Other head coach openings: Memphis (C-USA) Akron (MAC) and Western Kentucky (Sun Belt).

Why didn’t Notre Dame want to play in a bowl game? According to ND athletic director Jack Swarbrick claims it has to do with the firing of Charlie Weis, hence the team would be without their offensive coordinator. Baloney. Jimmy Clausen could call his own plays and the Irish offense would be just fine. Pain and simple, Notre Dame does not fancy the idea of playing in a fourth tier bowl game and Swarbrick didn’t want to risk ending the season 6-7 with a loss in the GMAC Bowl against MAC champion Central Michigan.

Heisman Trophy Top 3 candidates:

1. Toby Gerhart, Stanford. 311 rushing attempts, 1,736 yards rushing (144.7 ypg, 5.6 ypc) 26 rushing TDs.
2. Tim Tebow, Florida. 162-244 (66.4 percent completion rate) 2,166 yards, 17 TD passes/4 Int., 193 rushing attempts, 796 yards (66.3 ypg, 4.1 ypc) 13 rushing TDs.
3. Colt McCoy, Texas. 310-432 (71.8 percent completion rate) 3,328 yards, 27 TD passes/9 Int. 111 rushing attempts, 368 yards (30.7 ypg, 3.3 ypc) 2 rushing TDs.

Conference Power Meter: 1. SEC. 2. Pac-10. 3. Big Ten. 4. Big 12 5. ACC 6. MWC. 7. Big East. 8. C-USA. 9. WAC. 10. Sun Belt.

College football time capsule … December 8, 2001- No. 2 Tennessee fell to No. 21 LSU in the SEC title game, 31-20 in Atlanta. Tiger back-up quarterback Matt Mauck led six scoring drives following the loss of starter Rohan Davey near the end of the second quarter. The loss cost the Vols a shot at the national championship against Miami in the 2002 Rose Bowl Game. (Courtesy of The National Football Foundation & College Hall of Fame). A Tennessee – Miami contest would have been far more desirable than the Nebraska—Miami mismatch the BCS computers spit out that year. It would have also been a sweet reunion for the Vols with the Rose Bowl after 57 years absence. Tennessee lost to USC 25-0 in the 1945 Rose Bowl Game and 14-0 in the 1940 Rose Bowl Game.

Final week of the regular season picks…

No. 18 Houston vs East Carolina for the C-USA championshp. One name: Case Keenum. No defense in the C-USA has been able to detail the Keenum Express. If the Cougars play a little defense, they’ll win this game handily.
No. 5 Cincinnati at No. 14 Pittsburgh. Although not a true conference championship, it’s still a de facto conference title game because the winner takes all in this one: the Big East championship and an automatic berth in a BCS bowl game. Look for Pitt to pull off the mild upset in front of their home crowd.
Arizona at No. 20 USC. Conventional wisdom would not bet against Pete Carroll and the Trojans at home in the last game of the regular season. Live on the dangerous side with this one and look for the Wildcats to pull off a surprise.
No. 1 Florida vs No. 2 Alabama for the SEC championship. If Lou Saban is really the mastermind some say he is, then the Tide will figure out how to take down Florida in Atlanta. It’s tough to bet against this Gator team with Tim Tebow leading the charge, but I’m going to go with Alabama in this one. Remember, they were taking on teams like Virginia Tech and winning when the Gators breezed by Charleston Southern.
No. 12 Georgia Tech vs No. 25 Clemson for the ACC championship. Both teams are coming off tough losses to non-conference rivals. The Yellow Jackets barely defeated Clemson in conference play earlier this season. It’s really tough to beat a good football team twice in the same season. Clemson wins this one.
New Mexico State at No. 6 Boise State. Of course, this is my “can’t miss” game. Boise State completes their romp over their weak conference competition. The score should be something like 70-0 in this one.
No. 3 Texas vs No. 21 Nebraska for the Big 12 championship. If Texas doesn’t create some serious crop formations on the Cornhusker defense in this title game of unequals, then Bo Pelini deserves an immediate raise. Nebraska hasn’t faced an offense the likes of Texas this season and Mack Brown knows how to close a deal as good as anyone else in the country.
Wisconsin at Hawaii. Hawaii needs to win to become bowl eligible. Wisconsin needs to win to get a better bowl invitation. The motivation is certainly in favor of the home team, but the Badgers should be able to get the job done, despite the distractions of surf and sun.

Last week: 6-2 Season: 57-37 (.606)
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About Todd Erickson

Todd Erickson is a member of the Football Writers Association of America (FWAA) and pens the RealFootball365 Top 25 college football power rankings and "Fourth and inches..." weekly columns from August thru January. He is currently working on the second edition of Road to the Rose Bowl...
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