Saturday, August 30, 2008

College Football Game Threads

It’s the most wonderful time of the year! There is a full slate of college football games on tap today and I plan on watching all day long. I’ll be heading to Norman for the OU/UT-Chattanooga game but you can be rest assured that I’ll be glued to the television both before and after the OU game.

What games are you watching? Let us know about it by starting a game thread in the forum. Share your thoughts about what is happening on the gridiron with the rest of us.

Active College Football Threads

Beanie Wells Injured For Ohio State

Virginia Tech/East Carolina

Oklahoma State vs. Washington State

USC at Virginia

Friday, August 29, 2008

Busters Best


Buster continues to grow faster than any father would like for his son to. He is in the 7th grade and plays quarterback for the junior high football team. Of course just like any 7th grader he thinks that he knows everything including the world of sports.

Based on that we bring you, once again, Busters Best where we look at five football games each week and go head to head with picks. Buster picks the games and the winners and I’ll agree or disagree. Here we go for week one.

Missouri vs. Illinois – There isn’t a better game in college football this week than this one. Two high profile quarterbacks going at each other and two teams that have very high expectations. It should be a lot of fun to watch.

Buster likes the Missouri Tigers to win and I am right there with him.

Alabama at Clemson – The Tigers are the pick of the ACC and Alabama is ranked in the Top 25…well…because they are Alabama. Buster and I are splitting on this one. He likes the Tide to pull off the upset and I think that it will be the Tigers who roll.

Tennessee at UCLA – Monday Night Football with a college twist, you gotta love it! Tennessee was a bad pass away from winning the SEC last year despite the problems they had. UCLA is already suffering from injuries and the season hasn’t even started yet. For that reason Buster and I are both going with the Volunteers to win on the road.

USC at Virginia – You have no idea how close I was to picking UVA to pull the upset here. USC is always loaded with talent but this year they lack experience. For this reason I think that they will struggle to a victory on the road while Buster believes that they are just going to pound the Cavilers.

Oklahoma State vs. Washington State – Buster and I are split on this one as well. He likes the Cougars to win in Seattle but I don’t have enough respect for the Pac 10 to pick one of their bottom teams over a mid-level Big 12 team. I’ll take the Cowboys.

Thursday, August 28, 2008

2008 College Football Preview: Heisman Contenders

Just before Christmas the most prestigious award in college football will be presented to the nation’s top player. Until then we are going to see players emerge as leading candidates and then see which university media relations department can put their guy over the top. Here are my favorites to bring home the hardware in 2008. We’ll be tracking them throughout the season.

Tim Tebow, QB Florida – We have to start with the guy who finished on top last year. Tebow has the opportunity to do something we haven’t seen since Archie Griffin won the trophy twice (1974 and 1975).

Pat White, QB West Virginia – With Steve Slaton gone to the NFL White becomes the key superstar on the explosive Mountaineer offense. He’ll have to avoid the injury bug that plagued him last season.

Sam Bradford, QB Oklahoma – Led the nation in passing efficiency last season and has a ton of talent around him in `08 including one of the best offensive lines in the country.

Chase Daniel, QB Missouri – Daniel was a frontrunner until the top ranked Tigers lost to Oklahoma in the Big 12 championship game. The two teams appear to be on a collision course again in`08.

Chris Wells, RB Ohio State – Wells is going to be the focal point of an offense that is going to score a lot of points this season.

Wednesday, August 27, 2008

A Good Option In Web Hosting

My Opinion on Sports has been around now for almost 3 ½ years and I have, at times, seriously considered moving over from blogger to my own domain. Of course with your own domain name comes the necessity of a hosting service and that is where I have spent most of my time researching.

Of course you want to find a service with a good hosting rating and a track record for longevity. Beyond that an award winning company wouldn’t hurt things either. Web Hosting Rating is a website that provides you all that information and more. Articles, a directory of hosting services and a Top 10 list of service providers are all available to you with just a simple click.

NCAA Football Rules Changes For 2008

The 2008 NCAA football season will be underway on Thursday and as we prepare for the opening weekend let’s take a quick look at some of the rule changes for this season.

Obtaining opponents’ signals prohibited – Also known as the Bill Belichick rule it is illegal for a team to video another teams’ sideline signals.
Chop block redefined - A chop block is now defined as a high-low or low-high combination block by any two players against an opponent (not the runner) anywhere on the field, with or without a delay between contacts; the “low” component is at the opponent’s thigh or below.

40-second play clock – The 15-second play clock and the clock following an inadvertent whistle are gone. Now when an official signals that the ball is dead, the
play clock will immediately begin a 40-second count.

If the 40-second count is interrupted for reasons beyond the control of the officials or the play-clock operator (e.g., clock malfunction), the referee shall stop the game clock and signal that the play clock should be re-set at 40 seconds and started immediately.

In the event that the 40-second clock is running and the ball is not ready to be snapped after 20 seconds into the count, the referee shall declare a timeout and signal that the play clock be set at 25 seconds. When play is to be resumed, the referee will give the ready-for-play signal and the play clock shall begin the 25-second count. The game clock will start on the snap unless it had been running when the referee declared a timeout; in that case it will start on the referee’s signal.

25-Second Clock - If the officials signal the game clock to be stopped for any of the following reasons, the referee shall signal that the clock should be set at 25seconds:
1. Penalty administration.
2. Charged team timeout.
3. Media timeout.
4. Injury timeout.
5. Measurement.
6. Change of possession.
7. Following a kick down.
8. Score.
9. Start of each period.
10. Start of a team’s series in extra period.
11. Instant replay review.
12. Other administrative stoppage.

When play is to be resumed, the referee will give the ready-for-play signal and the
play clock will begin the 25-second count.

Also the clock stops when ball carrier, fumble or backward pass goes out of bounds and
starts on the referee’s signal, except that in the last two minutes of each half, the clock
starts on the snap.

“Horse-collar” tackle introduced as a personal foul – This rule is introduced in the same format that the NFL uses.

Five-yard face mask/helmet opening foul eliminated – Now the penalty is only for
twisting, turning or pulling the face mask or helmet opening—15 yards.

Sideline infractions - Formerly warnings now it is a penalty on the first offense. First
two—fouls for delay of game (5-yard penalty). Third and subsequent—foul for sideline
interference (15-yard penalty)

Coach may retain successful challenge only once – If the coach correctly challenges a
play then he is rewarded with his challenge back for use again in the game. It can only be
used one other time but coaches who get it right now have the opportunity for two replay challenges.

Tuesday, August 26, 2008

League Punishes Kid For Being Too Good At Baseball

Remember the evolution of the “Proud Parent” bumper stickers? It started out with saying things like, “Proud Parent of an Honor Student” then moved on to things like “My Kid is an All-Star Baseball Player.” Now some parents in New Haven, Conn. need to post a sticker on the bumper of their cars that says, “My Kid Quit Baseball Because Yours Was Too Good.”

That is exactly what happened to a team in the Youth Baseball League of New Haven when they saw Nine-year-old Jericho Scott warming up. The league wants to ban Jericho from pitching because his fastball tops out at 40 mph.

"I think it's discouraging when you're telling a 9-year-old you're too good at something," said his mother, Nicole Scott. "The whole objective in life is to find something you're good at and stick with it. I'd rather he spend all his
time on the baseball field than idolizing someone standing on the street corner."

"He is a very skilled player, a very hard thrower," League attorney Peter Noble said. "There are a lot of beginners. This is not a high-powered league. This is a developmental league whose main purpose is to promote the sport."

However, this decision is about more than just promoting the sport of baseball though. Jericho turned down an invitation to play for the defending league champions to play for another league team. His team was playoff bound at 8-0 when the news came that Jericho was banned from pitching.

The reason for the ban wasn’t because Jericho was dangerous, he hasn’t hit a batter, or because he too good, 8 to10-year-olds are going to strike out more often than not anyway. It appears that the reason for the ban is nothing more than poor sportsmanship. The team that Jericho turned down is sponsored by sponsored by an employer of one of the league's administrators.

Someone To Stand On Your Behalf

Buying a car should be a joyful experience. However, as in many other industries there are people in car sales who are looking to take advantage of consumers who just don’t know any better. In fact, there are some who are so good at this that even a person who does their research can be taken to the cleaners on a bad used car deal.

This is why the Lemon Law was created, so that it may be an advocate for consumers who have been taken advantage of. Lemon Law information is easily available and varies state by state. In most cases you do have the right to get your money back or seek a replacement for you vehicle as long as certain requirements are met.

California Lemon Laws state that a vehicle must have been taken in for service on four or more occasions for a defect that substantially impairs the use or value of the vehicle as one of the requirements for consumers to be protected.

If you are a person who has been taken advantage of the best advice is to check the Lemon Law statutes by state and see what the appropriate action is for you to take. There are people who can help you!

Sunday, August 24, 2008

2008 BlogPoll Roundtable #1

With the dawn of the college football season upon us we also get the return of the roundtable discussions among the BlogPoll voters. This initial roundtable is hosted by Hey Jenny Slater and I am actually late in getting mine posted but make sure to check in over there for various responses from bloggers around the country.

In his "visiting lecturers" series posted on Every Day Should Be Saturday over the past few months, Orson Swindle asked each participant to explain which country, during which historical period, their team most resembles. Let's bring everything up to the present day and ponder: Which current sovereign nation is your team? Or to look at it another way, how does your team fit into the "world" of college football?

How does a person seriously answer that question understanding the current of the world in which we live. I would say that Oklahoma is certainly a NATO nation and the super power within their region (Big 12) but not strong enough yet for world domination (consecutive Fiesta Bowl losses and no BCS Championship since 2000). Could the Sooners be the Great Britain of the college football world?

Every preseason roundup has to have some discussion of who's overrated, but let's go beyond that. Which team do you think is poised to crap the bed in the biggest way this season relative to high expectations, and which game do you think will begin their slide into ignominy?

I’ll take the Kansas Jayhawks here. After finishing 12-1 in 2007 with an Orange Bowl victory over Virginia Tech Kansas is poised to make another run in 2008 with 15 returning starters but the schedule won’t be kind. Reality may kick in as early as September 12th when the Jayhawks travel to play the South Florida Bulls but most likely KU is going to feel the pain of back-to-back games at Oklahoma and against Texas Tech (10-18/10-25) and then against Texas and Missouri (11-15/11-29). It isn’t out of the question for Kansas to follow up an amazing 2007 campaign with a 5 loss effort in 2008.

On the flip side of that coin, which team do you think is going to burst out of nowhere to become 2008's biggest overachiever -- this year's version of Kansas '07, as it were -- and what's going to be the big upset that makes us all finally sit up and take notice of them?

Staying in the Big 12 I’ll go with the Texas Tech here. Like Kansas in `07 the Red Raiders will thrive early against an embarrassing non-conference schedule. They also have the luxury of playing Nebraska, Texas Longhorns - in a rebuilding year – and Oklahoma State all at home. Their toughest game of the season will be at Oklahoma where they’ll be underdogs to a Sooner team looking for revenge. Even if they should fall to Oklahoma they could still very easily finish the season at 11-1 and qualify for a BCS bowl.

Here's an "I'll hang up and listen" question. I put Ohio State and Oklahoma #1 and #2, respectively, despite their recent high-profile BCS face-plants. Where did you rank those two teams, and did those BCS issues have anything to do with it?

I voted Ohio State and Oklahoma #3 and #4, respectively, on my first ballot for two reasons. Ohio State returns 10 starters on offense and Oklahoma 8. These two teams are going to score a lot of points this year and nothing about previous BCS Bowl failures will prevent that.

Last season was a statistical outlier in countless ways, not the least of which was the fact that we ended up with a two-loss team as national champion. Do you think anyone plays a strong enough schedule to get MNC consideration as a two-loss team this year? Conversely, do you see anybody managing to sail into the national-championship game undefeated?

With the mockery of a system that we have I do believe that we could have another two-loss champion again. In fact, I’m going to go ahead and say that it will be a possibility from here on out. USC, Ohio State and Georgia all could lose two games and yet win their conference and find themselves in the BCS title game. Remember it is about when you lose and not necessarily who you lose to. LSU lost on November 23rd to Arkansas but Missouri lost the next week to Oklahoma in the Big 12 Championship game placing the Bayou Bengals into the BCS Title Game.

Ohio State and USC play each other in week two and Georgia has a September 20th date at Arizona State. Throw in the possibility of a conference loss and you have the formula for a repeat two-loss champion.

OK, time for some Olympic fever. Which athlete from the Beijing Olympics -- any sport, any country, with the exception of USA basketball since those guys are already pros -- would you most want to add to your team's roster this season? No worries about age, eligibility, or even gender; we'll worry about that crap later.

What could this guy do in a football uniform?

Thursday, August 21, 2008

2008 Pre-Season BlogPoll

1 Georgia (24)
2 Ohio State (17)
3 Southern Cal (15)
4 Oklahoma (6)
5 Florida (14)
6 Missouri
7 LSU (2)
8 Clemson
9 West Virginia
10 Auburn
11 Texas
12 Texas Tech
13 Wisconsin
14 Virginia Tech
15 Kansas
16 Arizona State
17 Tennessee
18 Oregon
19 South Florida
20 Brigham Young
21 Penn State
22 Illinois
23 Wake Forest
24 Alabama
25 Utah


Also Receiving Votes: California(1.3), Fresno State(1.0), South Carolina(0.9), Florida State(0.9), Pittsburgh(0.8), Michigan(0.8), Boston College(0.5), Rutgers(0.5), Boise State(0.4), Cincinnati(0.4), North Carolina(0.4), Oregon State(0.4), Miami (Florida)(0.4), Michigan State(0.3), Colorado(0.3), Oklahoma State(0.2), Nebraska(0.2), Notre Dame(0.2), Mississippi(0.2), Tulsa(0.1), Central Michigan(0.1), UCLA(0.1), Hawaii(0.1), TCU(0.1), Mississippi State(0.0), Connecticut(0.0), Duke(0.0), Purdue(0.0), Southern Miss(0.0), Northwestern(0.0), Georgia Tech(0.0), Iowa(0.0), Total Ballots: 78

Votes by blog here, votes by team here.

Wednesday, August 20, 2008

Click To Connect

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Olympic Boxing Turns Holyfield/Tyson

Some Boxers Have Been Known To Lack Superior Intelligence

Frustrations have been mounting with scoring and judging at the Olympic Games. Most popular has been in gymnastics where boos finally echoed through the building after Jonathan Horton’s scores were announced in the men’s high bar on Tuesday.

The boxing ring is getting a little different reaction though. With frustrations mounting about the scoring procedures in the ring Tajikistan’s Dzhakhon Kurbanov decided to file a former protest in the form of a bite.

Trailing 12-6 near the end of the third round Kerbanov bit his opponent, Kazakh’s Yerkebulan Shynaliyev, on the shoulder earning him a disqualification. Maybe too many knocks in the head had damaged the common sense portion of his brain or maybe, just maybe, Mike Tyson was in his corner. Regardless, Kurbanov won’t be remembered for beating world champion Abbos Atoev as much as being the doof who wasn’t smart enough not to bite.

Tuesday, August 19, 2008

Georgia Bulldogs Top BlogPoll Ballot #1




As we are gearing up for the college football season it is time once again to start submitting ballots for the BlogPoll. The pre-season ballot is due today with ballot #2 not being due until after opening weekend, August 30th. Well, you have to start somewhere and here is my initial Top 25 for the 2008 college football season.

RankTeamCommentsDelta
1GeorgiaFinished `07 #2, 17 returning starters 25
2Southern CalOnly 4 returning starters on offense but still loaded 24
3Ohio State19 returning starters 23
4OklahomaFirst team to ever win back-to-back Big 12 Championships 22
5MissouriAveraged 39.9 ppg in `07 21
6West Virginia8 returning starters on offense 20
7Clemson16 returning starters, Bowden has to get past his dad on the road 19
8LSUDefense lost 6 starters 18
9Florida16 returning starters make the Gators very dangerous 17
10Texas TechCould have the most prolific offense in the country 16
11Auburn16 returning starters second most behind UF in the SEC 15
12Wisconsin17 returning starters 14
13TexasLonghorns have never finished lower than 2nd in the South under Brown 13
14Virginia TechOnly 4 returning starters on defense and just 10 total 12
15Arizona State13 returning starters for Pac 10 co-champs 11
16Kansas15 returning starters but a much more difficult schedule in `08 10
17TennesseeVols were an interception away from winning the SEC championship in `07 9
18Penn State18 returning starters 8
19South Florida17 returning starters could be the best team in the Big East 7
20Wake Forest9 returning starters on defense 6
21Brigham YoungOnly 3 returning starters on defense 5
22California4 returning starters on offense 4
23Illinois13 returning starters 3
24ColoradoHawkins best team but also most difficult schedule 2
25Tulsa14 returning starters 1

Dropped Out:


Sound Off: Who do you think should be #1?

Monday, August 18, 2008

Dare To Dream Of Being Debt Free

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Thursday, August 14, 2008

Fantasy Football Time - Who's In?

The My Opinion on Sports Fantasy Football League is forming right now so now is your chance to see if your team can compete with The Fighting M.O.O.S (that’s my team name).

To join the league, make sure you have a Yahoo account, click here and use the following League ID# 434457 and Password: inittowinit.

Have fun and good luck!

Tuesday, August 12, 2008

2008 College Football Preview: MAC Conference

What do we really know about the MAC? I’m willing to bet that the average college football fan couldn’t name all 13 teams in the conference and they would struggle naming half of them. However, there is some good football found here in the likes of Central and Western Michigan, Bowling Green, Miami (OH) and Northern Illinois. You won’t find any BCS Busters here but that doesn’t mean we won’t find some good football.

MAC West Predictions

Western Michigan – In 2005 the Broncos started 17 freshmen which was an NCAA record. In 2008 those 17 seniors will comprise the best defense in the conference and one of the best offenses.

Ball State – The Cardinals were the beneficiaries of a +17 turnover ration in 2007 which led them to a winning record and a bowl appearance for the first time since 1996. This year they have their set their goal even higher.

Central Michigan – The three time defending West Champions will have a high power offense but could still be passed up by the up-and-comers of the conference. CMU has 16 returning starters but lose their two leading tacklers on defense.

Northern Illinois – Last year the Huskies were ravaged by injuries and were -17 in turnovers. It would be hard to believe that both of those trends would continue in 2008 and that alone should make NIU a better team.

Eastern Michigan – The Eagles end the season by playing three of their final four games on the road. They haven’t been to a bowl game since 1987 and that four game stretch to close out the season will most likely prevent them from going again in 2008.

Toledo – Road games against Eastern Michigan, Northern Illinois and Western Michigan plus hosting both Miami (OH) and Bowling Green puts the Rockets in a very difficult situation.


MAC East Predictions

Miami (OH) – The Redhawks have 17 returning starters in 2008 and will boast one of the top defenses in the conference. The October 18th game against Bowling Green should be their primary obstacle to winning the division. Considering they beat the Falcons 47-14 last year they should be the favorites even if the game is at Bowling Green.

Bowling Green – The Falcons went 8-5 in 2007 but were embarrassed by Tulsa 63-7 in the GMAC Bowl. They return 17 starters and could be the most experienced team in the conference. If they defend their home turf they’ll be playing for the conference championship but there are some defensive concerns to address. Giving up 32.1 points per game won’t cut it in 2008.

Buffalo – Turner Gill is doing an amazing job with the Bulls and it is about to pay dividends. They return 18 starters this year and are just a few breaks away from going to their first ever bowl game.

Kent State – The Golden Flashes were hampered by quarterback injuries last year which directly contributed to their -11 turnover ratio and four losses by just a touchdown. Staying healthy in 2008 should help resolve that.

Temple – Typically you’d be excited about a team returning all 22 starters from the previous year but when the team only managed 16.4 points per game while giving up 26.3 you enter the season with guarded optimism.

Ohio – A home game against Akron will save the Bobcats from finishing last in the division.

Akron – The Zips have only 13 returning starters which is the fewest in the conference. It will be very difficult for them to improve from their 4-8 record last year.

My Pre-Season All Conference Team

Offense
QB – Nate Davis, Ball State
RB – Eugene Jarvis, Kent State
RB – Justin Anderson, Northern Illinois
WR – Stephen Williams, Toledo
WR – Dante Love, Ball State
WR – Jamarko Simmons, Western Michigan
TE – Branden Ledbetter, Western Michigan
C – Dan Gerberry, Ball State
G – Dave DiFranco, Miami
G – Jeff Niedermier, Buffalo
T – Robert Brewster, Ball State
T – Andrew Hartline, Central Michigan

Defense
DE – Larry English, Northern Illinois
DT – Andre Neblett, Temple
DT – Craig Rusch, Northern Illinois
DE – Diyral Briggs, Bowling Green
LB – Clayton Mullins, Miami
LB – Tim McCarthy, Northern Illinois
LB – Boston McCornell, Western Michigan
CB – Londen Fryar, Western Michigan
CB – BJ Hill, Ball State
SS – Alex Kube, Northern Illinois
FS – Louis Delmas, Western Michigan

Special Teams
K – Alex Steigerwald, Toledo
P – Chris Miller, Ball State
KR – Bryan Williams, Akron
PR – Andre Jones, Akron

Wednesday, August 06, 2008

Brett Favre A Buccaneer By The End Of The Day

Not Gonna Happen!

With the latest chapter of the Brett Favre saga unfolding on Tuesday afternoon I’m going to go out on a limb and say that he’ll be gone by the end of the day today. It is obvious that they don’t want him in Green Bay and I even question how much he still wants to be a Packer at this point. It has become obvious to everyone that if he still wants to play football it will be in a different uniform and at this point frustrations are so high that a trade will happen very soon.

So what are the options? Favre wants to go to a contender with Minnesota being his first option. That won’t happen because the Vikings are only a decent quarterback away from having all the pieces to the puzzle put together and a quarterback like Favre would make them a Super Bowl contender. Minnesota also plays in the same division as the Packers and are the opponent for the season opener. There is no way Favre winds up wearing purple.

The other two teams that are realistic possibilities are the Jets and the Buccaneers. With neither of them being a “contender” with the same assets as Minnesota the Bucs are closer to being there than the Jets.

This whole ordeal has become distraction at camp and the Packers want it to go away very soon. Brett Favre says that he really wants to play and isn’t going to sniff the field in Green Bay. The sooner he arrives at a new destination the better. For those reasons my guess is that Favre will be heading to the Tampa area sometime in the next 24 hours.
Sound Off: Share your thoughts on Brett Favre in the forum.

Tuesday, August 05, 2008

2008 College Football Preview: Conference USA

Conference USA could be on course to achieve what the WAC has already done by sending a team to a BCS bowl game. June Jones, who guided Hawaii to the Sugar Bowl, is now a coach in this conference while teams like Tulsa, Central Florida, East Carolina and Houston look to remain at the top of the conference. With the emergence of quality teams in the conference if a team could run the table they’d find themselves playing the role of BCS spoiler in the same manner as Boise State and Hawaii from the last two years.

West Division Predictions

Tulsa – The biggest questions for the Golden Hurricanes is at the quarterback position and the defense. Tulsa only returns 5 players on defense and must improve from their 452 yards allowed per game last year. They are stacked at running back and receiver as well as having one of the best offensive lines in the conference.

UTEP – Like Tulsa the Miners are slated to be very good on offense in 2008 but must improve on defense. The October 18th game against Tulsa should determine who wins the West.

Houston – The Cougars biggest loss from 2007 could be head coach Art Briles who bolted to Baylor to try to resurrect the Big 12’s perennial doormat. Enter Kevin Sumlin who has veteran leadership at the quarterback position and 7 returning starters on defense.

Rice – It won’t be the offense that loses games for the Owls in 2008. It’ll be the defense. Quarterback Chase Clement is the key to an offense that averaged 31.4 points per game last season but their defense allowed opponents to score a whopping 42.9 points per game.

SMU – June Jones has 13 returning starters including the starting quarterback, leading rusher and receiver from 2007. That in itself is enough for him to work with. Look for the Mustangs to improve on a 0-8 conference record from last season.

Tulane – The Green Wave do return 15 starters which is second most to Rice in the division but they’ll suffer greatly from the graduation of running back Matt Forte who rushed for 2,200 yards last season.

East Division Predictions

Central Florida – Knights should have the strongest defense in the conference in `08 and despite losing 2,500 yard rusher Kevin Smith the offense shouldn’t have to keep pace with the team’s 35.9 points per game because their 9 returning starters on defense should improve on the 26.6 points per game they allowed last season.

East Carolina – The Pirates have 16 returning starters and a conference schedule that sets them up with all of their difficult games at home. East Carolina will be in contention to play for the conference championship.

Memphis – The Tigers are very solid in the offensive line as well as with their receiving corps a defense. The key question I have is how much of an immediate impact can new quarterback Arkelon Hall make? If he is able to give them a true run/pass threat then the rest of the conference should beware.

Marshall – With 17 returning starters Mark Snyder should have his best team yet as the head coach of the Thundering Herd. Six wins and a trip to a bowl game shouldn’t be out of the question.

Southern Mississippi – New Head Coach Larry Fedora is an offensive guru who resurrected the Oklahoma State offense. He should be able to do the same in Hattiesburg but will need to recruit first. The Eagles return only 10 starters from last season which is a conference low.

UAB – The Blazers only have 73 scholarship football players and while that is up from 60 last year they still have a way to go to make up the 188 yards they were out gained on average in `07.

My Pre-Season All Conference Team


Offense
QB – Chase Clement, Rice
RB – Darius Marshall, Marshall
RB – Tarrion Adams, Tulsa
WR – Brennan Marion, Tulsa
WR – Jamar Bryant, East Carolina
WR – Darius Passmore, Marshall
TE – Cody Slate, Marshall
C – Robby Felix, UTEP
G – Josh Evans, Marshall
G – Justin Morsey, Tulsa
T – Patrick Brown, Central Florida
T – SirVincent Rogers, Houston

Defense
DE – Marcus Hands, East Carolina
DT – Linvall Joseph, East Carolina
DT – Ell Ash, Houston
DE – Moton Hopkins, Tulsa
LB – Maurice Kitchens, Marshall
LB – Pierre Bell, East Carolina
LB – Evan Lee, Tulane
LB – Chance Henderson, Central Florida
CB – Johnell Neal, Central Florida
CB – Joe Burnett, Central Florida
SS – Sha’Reff Rashad, Central Florida
FS – CJ Spillman, Marshall

Special Teams

K – Jose Martinez, UTEP
P – Thomas Morstead, SMU
KR – Darius Marshall, Marshall
PR – Joe Burnett, Central Florida



Sound Off: Make your own Conference USA predictions in the forum.