College Football Preview

Well, here were are, another college football season is upon us.  What on earth could happen this year?  Will it be chalk again, or will some longshot emerge?  Will a favorite win the Heisman, or will someone step up and steal it, a la Manziel?  I polled 50 friends and came up with some interesting results.  I'll give you my thoughts on the poll results, along with some big games for the year, and a few bold predictions.  So without further ado, here is your college football season preview...

HEISMAN TROPHY WINNER

POLL RESULTS
BRAXTON MILLER          23
JADEVEON CLOWNEY     6
AJ MCCARRON                  6
JOHNNY MANZIEL            4
TEDDY BRIDGEWATER   4
AARON MURRAY              2
D'ANTHONY THOMAS     2
TAJH BOYD                        1
TYLER TETTLETON          1
TJ YELDON                         1

MY PICK
D'ANTHONY THOMAS

Well, you can tell that me, and most of my friends live in Ohio.  Braxton Miller is the choice to win the Heisman according to this poll.  And, I hate to say it, but this is very possible.  The guy is shiftier than Shifty Shellshock himself.  He has an above average arm and he has a great offensive line.  When I think about Miller winning the Heisman, I think about how my buddy Nagel told me a few years ago that Miller didn't look good in the spring game and that he thought Braxton would be a bust.  Even the best scouts can't get them all correct, right Johnny?  Clowney has a chance just because of his hype.  All you hear is how the Heisman isn't fair because a defensive player can't win it.  Well, you know how the media works, if they have a chance to rally against something, they will.  If Clowney has a good year and carries the Cocks to a title, he'll win it.  McCarron and Yeldon have a chance if the Tide make it to the title game.  Are too many people sleeping on Manziel?  I mean he won last year, and has to be better, right?  Tyler Tettleton is probably the worst pick on here.  Aaron Schmitmeyer made that gem of a pick.  My pick is D'Anthony Thomas.  A receiver hasn't won since Desmond Howard in 1991, but this dude is about as fast and as quick as any player I have seen in a long time.  He'll get the ball a lot, and get it in space a lot.  If he rips off five to ten sensational plays and the Ducks make a run, he'll be on the top of the list at the end of the year.  I'm rolling with him and I think I have a good shot. 



2014 BCS NATIONAL CHAMPION

POLL RESULTS
ALABAMA               22
OHIO STATE            13
STANFORD                4
OREGON                     4
LOUISVILLE              1 
GEORGIA                   1
SOUTH CAROLINA  1
FLORIDA STATE      1
NEBRASKA               1
SYRACUSE                1
LSU                             1

MY PICK
STANFORD

The results show that the two hottest picks are the team that won last year, and the only team that went undefeated last year.  You guys have no imagination.  Alabama is the unsexy pick, but I understand why everyone is taking them, they never rebuild, they just continue to reload.  The Tide will always have a tough schedule because they play in the SEC, but even if they lose, the SEC is the only conference where you can lose and still make the title game.  Alabama is definitely the favorite this year.  Oh the Buckeyes, of course.  Will they go undefeated again?  With that schedule, they might.  At Michigan and at Northwestern are probably their toughest games.  They pulled enough out of their ass last year that they might get some bad luck to even it out this year, but I doubt it.  Oregon and Stanford received 16% of the votes.  Take a look at Oregon's schedule once, other than Stanford, they have a pretty easy walk to an undefeated season.  Stanford has five ranked teams on the schedule, but the three toughest games are all at home.  I picked Stanford for that reason, they have the home games, and a tough enough schedule to get up top in the BCS.  Georgia, LSU, South Carolina, and Florida State aren't bad longshots.  Louisville doesn't have a chance.  My wife took Nebraska, she must have caught the homerdom virus from you Buckeye fans.  Syracuse?  A good friend of mine named Bradley made that brilliant pick. 



TEN BIG GAMES

1. Ohio at Louisville - I'll be there.  Tettleton back for his senior year.  Can they pull off another upset?
2. South Carolina at Georgia - Winner will be on the fast track to a BCS game, loser won't.
3. Alabama at Texas A&M - Can that no good, bad seed, Manziel, do it again?
4. Wisconsin at Ohio State - Will the Bucks get enough homer calls to pull it out?  We'll see.
5. Florida at LSU - Lots of punts, lots of college chics, lots of hopes go down in flames for one side.
6. Georgia at Florida - If either team is still undefeated, this will be crazy.  And ditto about coeds.
7. Oregon at Stanford - Could be the biggest Thursday night game in a decade.  No USF at Rutgers 2007 doesn't count.
8. LSU at Alabama - Of course everyone will be watching this one, right?
9. Nebraska at Michigan - Look at Nebraska's schedule, good chance they are undefeated going into this one.
10. Ohio State at Michigan - If I don't put this on here, people will get mad at me, and I'm not trying to make uneducated, ignorant fans mad.  Ooooh.

BOLD PREDICTIONS 

1. There will be no undefeated teams.  With a season like this, with so many teams with a chance to win it, I see total chaos in the BCS.  And why not, it's the last season for the BCS, so might as well go out with a bang.

2. There won't be enough bowl eligible teams for all the bowls.  I've always wanted this to happen, this is the year.  And I know that they would just let an under .500 team in, but it would still be funny.

3. A ridiculous individual record will be broken.  I'm thinking some running back runs for 400 yards, or a DB gets six interceptions in one game.  Something that will be remembered by all for a long time.

4. A team puts up 100 points in a game.  We've seen the games where a team has 30 or so in the first quarter and dials it down.  This year, the breaks fall the right way, and someone reaches the century mark.

5. Some analyst from ESPN will get in trouble for having a sex tape leaked.  My wife thinks it will be Herbstreit.  This is a ridiculous prediction, but one that I had to get in writing in case it happens.

There you have it, my college football preview.  Let's hear your bold predictions and thoughts on the upcoming season.  Thanks for reading.

Curt

PS This video is pretty legit, give it a watch. (And yes, about 35 seconds in, there's a sweet move by Braxton.)