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Assuming Spring actually gets here for the majority of the country (30-degree temperatures in Alabama, snow in North Carolina, DOOM in the upper Midwest) and isn’t just some sort of cruel myth, college football practice will come with it. I motion at this point for it to be called “Extended Frigging Winter Practice (EFWP),” but it’s yet to take off.
In case you haven’t heard, Michigan hired some guy named Jim Harbaugh; Ohio State possibly has three quarterbacks who are better than your top guy; Marcus Mariota isn’t around anymore; and Amari Cooper apparently will need to be replaced.
Those are all popular topics around the sport these days. However, as we enter Extended Frigging Winter Practice, there are other things going on that probably aren’t sucking up as much pub. Here, they will be listed:
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5. Gesthemene in Bloomington: No, what happens with Indiana football doesn’t tilt the balance of power in the Big Ten, but athletic director Fred Glass has supported the program substantially … both financially and otherwise … during the Kevin Wilson era. If Indiana fails to make a bowl game, you have to think there will be unrest. It’d be a harrowing situation for the football program, which seemed on the cusp of a breakthrough this time last year, with two potential star quarterbacks on the roster. One finished on injured reserve. The other finished at Illinois State playing for a title there.
Indiana has tried to gain ground in terms of being competitive in football under Glass, but it has to result in bowl games at the very least. A regime change fostered from another empty winter would set the program back. A lot of the burden rests on the quarterback position, where cocksure Zander Diamont has the upper edge going into EFWP.
4. No small potatoes to replace at Boise State: The Broncos flexed old muscle after an 8-win final campaign for Chris Petersen before shoving off to Washington last year with a 12-win season, establishing themselves again as the preeminent reindeer pulling the mid-major sleigh until they can make the jump. Yes, replacing Jay Ajayi will be a salty task, but the abrupt and unexpected loss of Mike Sanford to Notre Dame means it’s late to go looking for such a major position to fill. Eliah Drinkwitz has been rumored as a staff promotion to the position, and with Boise kicking those old tires on national relevance sooner rather than later, it might be the most important assistant coach hire in the country. The CFB Playoff will eventually have to deal with a mid-major unbeaten team entering the fold. Boise seems like a natural fit to rattle that cage.
3. Miami Vise: Whether right or wrong, coach Al Golden and staff will eventually have to meet the expectations set forth by being at Miami, and hell, they knew that going in. You don’t take jobs and then get shellshocked by the expectations. Football has become a quarterback’s game, so the rise of Brad Kaaya probably means a lot to the overall fortunes of Miami football in the short-term.
Last year, The U suffered only its third losing season since 1980 (damn!) and can’t have one of those again and expect things to stay the same. Kaaya and teammates have reportedly been hitting the bricks getting back to work, and with a mostly manageable schedule that includes a “Show Me” game against Nebraska at home, the ‘Canes could be a surprise team. The above link states elite talent wants to play with Kaaya. The draw will also eventually need to be wins, however.
2. Left in the Leach in Wazzu: It’s juvenile to consider Mike Leach on any sort of hot seat when he’s rolling out $2.75 million in the bank, win or lose, for five years. However, the reality is that Leach is one of those guys where you just expect everything, because you know he’s good enough to give it to you. It’s easy to forget that by coaching standards, Leach is a fairly young 53-years-old, but even he in a private moment would probably admit that after 10 years of zero losing seasons in Lubbock, he wasn’t expecting three straight in Pullman. Worse yet, last year was marked by total regression in spite of a reasonably favorable schedule and veteran quarterback play. The Cougars have the talent at wide receiver. Now they need to find a defense and hope Luke Falk is one of those guys that goes from “off the radar” to “household name” quick, fast, and in a hurry under center.
1. Dawg, who’s your quarterback: Georgia is like that underground band you go see and every time walk away thinking, “How has no one found these guys yet?” Then, every time a major label comes to check them out, something’s just off enough to keep them from the big time.
While Hutson Mason was mostly seen as a stopgap between Aaron Murray and whatever elite recruit steps in next, the Dawgs have a run game, talent on defense, and elite playmaking ability all over the joint — enough to suggest that if one of their highly recruited guys (Brice Ramsey, Faton Bauta, Jacob Park) is the real deal, this could be the year Georgia has been waiting for as the SEC East seems eternally mediocre and desperate for someone to strangle it.
What will Brian Schottenheimer go for? The athletic dual threat Bauta (remember, Schottenheimer coached Robert Griffin III, Mark Sanchez, and Johnny Manziel in the NFL for various stints…), Ramsey, a former Wing-T offense high school player, or the burly-armed Park? The right choice might mean an SEC title game. The wrong call will lead to more of the same.
