...And the hits just keep on comin'. Week five saw a lot of upsets in college football and the Pac 10 wasn't immune to the improbable. Week six was simply unbelievable.

College football nearly saw the #1 and #2 teams in the land get knocked off at home (had it not been for some woefully inept coaching by Florida's coach Urban Meyer), but when all was said and done, the Pac 10 saw a weak Notre Dame team shock UCLA in the Rose Bowl, and an even weaker team knock off USC in their house.

This really played havok with the College Fix Pick 'em contest, and nobody ran the table... nobody was even over .500. This week saw ten of the 21 participants at 2-2, while the other 11 went just 1-3. Enough to make us all feel like we're morons!

I should point out that one NON-Participant, Collegefix newcomer,, Mcdawg actually picked Notre dame to take out UCLA, so he get's honors for having the pick of the week, despite not being included in the contest.

For the week, DM14, Global, GoDawgs!, ThaiCoug, Frogmenrule,Kenber, TrojanBacker, 2*2*2, DemonDog, and Hey4hawks all went 2-2... The rest went 1-3.

ThaiCoug took sole possession of first place with his stellar 2-2 record last week.

1. ThaiCoug .................................................... 33-8 (80.5%)
2. 00Dawg ...................................................... 32-9 (78.0%)
3T. Trojan Backer, DemonDog......................... 31-10 (75.6%)
5. Go Dawgs................................................... 27-9 (75.0%)
6T. DM14, Global, Frogmenrule, Bow Down... 30-11 (73.2%)
10. Hey4hawks................................................. 23-9 (71.9%)
11T. Waltham, Kenber, Paul.............................. 29-12 (70.7%)
14T. ChiDawg, CougLJ, Schuurmercoug,
Dawgfan, 2*2*2, Drake.................................28-13 (68.3%)
20. Kegger56...................................................... 12-7 (63.7%
21. Okfan.......................................................... 20-12 (62.5%)

Special observations...

• Thaicoug continues to be on a roll.
• 2*2*2 is moving up the ranks after a slow start.
• Top 10 consists of 1 Wazzu, 7 UW fans, 1 Oregon Fan, and 1 USC fan

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Next week, it doesn't get any easier...

Arizona (2-4) @ USC (4-1)

• Could USC be so down as to lose back to back home games?

Washington State (2-4) @ Oregon (4-1)

• After a bye week, how will Oregon play?

Texas Christian (3-3) @ Stanford (2-3)

• Can Stanford build on the second biggest win in their history?

Oregon State (3-3) @ California (5-0)

• Can OSU play on the road?

Washington (2-3) @ Arizona State (6-0)

• Will ASU come out flat at home and can UW capitalize on it?
• This could be the game of the week.

good luck!

DM14

Pick here

Labels: CollegeFix, Dawgman14

Week five is in the books... thank GOODNESS! What a strange week. We usually see, when only five games are being predicted, a large number of people that go 5-0, the majority of others going 4-1 or 3-2, and just a couple that go 2-3. Not so in week 5.

Bow Down was the sole stud. Being one of just two people predicting Arizona to take out Washington State in the desert, Bow Down was the only person to pick 5-0 for week 5.

Behind him, we had Demon Dog, Trojan Backer, Watham, Frogmenrule, and Go Dawgs! all pick 4 games correctly.

Then, a larger contingent of 3-2 predictors with Okfan, dawgfan, Kenber, 2*2*2, Paul, and last current leaders ThaiCoug and 00Dawg.

Lagging behind at just 2-3, was several of the contenders, Hey4Hawks, Drake, Schuurmercoug, CougLJ, ChiDawg, Global, and myself.

Kegger 56 did not make his picks and can only miss one more week to avoid disqualification (four missed weeks is the max), although, we would still welcome your picks for bragging rights.

Current standings through week five are as follows...

1T. ThaiCoug, 00Dawg............31-6 (83.8%)

3T. BowDown, Demon Dog, Trojan Backer........29-8 (78.4%)

6. GoDawgs!....25-7 (78.1%)

7T. Watham, Frogmenrule, Paul, Global, DM14..... 28-9 (75.7%)

12. Hey4Hawks.......21-7 (75.0%)

13. Kegger 56.........11-4 (73.3%)

14T. ChiDawg, CougLJ, Schuurmercoug, Drake, Kenber, Dawgfan....27-10 (73.0%)

20.2*2*2....26-11 (70.3%)

21. Okfan.....19-9 (67.9%)

Looks like ThaiCoug and 00Dawgs continue to act as pace car. How fitting is it that we have one Coug and one Dawg leading the way. Now if only Hey4Hawks can catch them, it could be real fun!

Anyways, next weeks games are as follows...

Arizona at Oregon State

Arizona State at Washington State

Stanford at Southern Cal

Notre Dame at UCLA

Washington, Cal and Oregon all have BYE weeks.

Good luck

Pick here

DM14

Labels: CollegeFix, Dawgman14

Well, week 4 is in the books and while it was a tough week on the field for the Northwest schools (with the notable exception of Oregon), our little contest has finally begun to gain a bit of separation.

First, in week four, seven individuals showed off their prognosticating genius by going undefeated, as ThaiCoug, CougLJ, Schuurmercoug, Kenber, Trojan Backer, 2*2*2, and 00Dawg were a perfect 5-0. Special cudos go to 00Dawgs for looking beyond his loyalties and going against the Huskies, which proved to be the correct way to go verses UCLA.

ThaiCoug and 00Dawg also deserves special recognition as they continued to claim the top spot after both going 5-0 for the week.

Beside them, DM14, Global, ChiDawg, Frogmenrule, Waltham, Dawgfan, DemonDog, Okfan, BowDown, Paul, and Hey4Hawks all went 4-1 keeping pace with the pac.

Drake had the sole tough week, going 3-2, and GoDawgs! didn't predict any games this week.

So without further delay, here is how we have panned out thus far, by winning percentage...

1T. ThaiCoug, ooDawg 28-4 (.875)

3. Hey4Hawks 19-4 .826)

4T. DM14, Global 26-6 (.813)

6T. ChiDawg, CougLJ, Scuurmercoug, Trojan Backer, Demon Dog, Drake, Paul 25-7 (.781)

13. GoDawgs 21-6 (.778)

14T Frogmenrule, Waltham, Dawgfan, Kenber, BowDown 24-8 (.750)

19. Kegger56 11-4 (.733)

20. 2*2*2 23-9 (.719)

21. Okfan 16-7 (.696)

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Next week?

California (4-0) @ Oregon (4-0)... Looks to be clearly the game of the week

Southern Cal (3-0) @ Washington (2-2)

Arizona State (4-0) @ Stanford (1-2)

UCLA (3-1) @ Oregon State (2-2)

Washington State (2-2) @ Arizona (1-3)

Good luck!

Pick em here

DM14

Labels: CollegeFix, Dawgman14

Week three of our First annual College Fix Pick 'em contest is in the books and we saw results all over the map in week three. Things really got mixed up with results ranging from 9-1 to 5-5 for the week.

The big winner for the week was Drake who went a phenomenal 9-1, correctly predicting every game except the Utah upset over UCLA, which nobody got correct. Several others finished at 8-2 and it all went down hill from there.

The honors for the pick of the week goes to Drake, Demon Dog, and Myself for picking New Mexico to hand it to Arizona, in Tucson. In order to inflate my own ego, I would like to point out that I was the first to choose New mexico, and the others are copy cats :)!

So without further delay, here is how we are fairing thus far. So far, there have been a max of 27 games to pick, some have picked less but many have picked all of the games.

Just as a reminder, once a person has failed to pick in four weeks, I will remove them from the contest, although they are still encouraged to pick for fun.

1T. 00dawgs, ThaiCoug 23-4 (.852)

3. Hey4Hawks 15-3 (.833 picked two weeks)

4T. DM14, Global, Drake 22-5 (.815)

7T GoDawgs, DemonDog, Bow Down, ChiDawgs 21-6 (.778)

11T. Coug LJ, Frogmenrule, Schuurmercoug, Waltham, Dawgfan, Trojan Backer, Bow Down 20-7 (.741)

18. Kenber 19-8 (.704)

19. Kegger56 7-3 (.700) (1 week picked)

20T 2*2*2 18-9, Ok Fan 12-6 (.667) (2 weeks picked)

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Next weeks Games

Now it get's interesting as the Pac 10 cranks up with divisional games. Just five games to pick but they definitely have some teeth.

Arizona (1-2) @ California (3-0)

Washington State (2-1) @ Southern Cal (2-0)

Oregon State (2-1) @ Arizona State (3-0)

Washington (2-1) @ UCLA (2-1)

Oregon (3-0) @ Stanford (1-1)

Good Luck!

DM14

Click to Pick

Labels: CollegeFix, Dawgman14

Well, week two is in the books and what a week it was. As I remember, last year, things really didn't get cranked up until the fourth or fifth week of the season, as nearly all of the predictions were easy to pick. Not so in 2007. A quick recap shows us that of the 20 participants that are actively making predictions 19 of the 20 missed, picking Oregon State over Cincinnati... only Demondog got it right. 14 of the 20 participants chose Michigan over Oregon and 11 of the 20 participants chose Boise State over washington. WOW, what a tough week.

Aside from the prognosticating genius of Demondog, the big winners in week two were Hey4hawks, OkFan, BowDown, and 00Dawgs, who all went 7-1 missing only on the Oregon state Cincinnati game.

Hey4Hawks, and OkFan entered the contest this week, so you guys jumped right into the swing of things, quickly taking the fifth place slot. Way to go.

So without further delay, here is where we stand now, after the first two weeks of the season.

1T. GoDawgs!, Thai Coug, and 00Dawgs 15-2 (88.2%)

4T. Hey4Hawks, OkFan 7-1 (87.5%)

6T. DM14, Global, Frogmenrule, Waltham, Dawgfan, and Paul 14-3 (82.4%)

12T. ChiDawg, Coug LJ, Schuurmenrcoug, Drake and BowDown 13-4 (76.5%)

17T. Kenber, TrojanBacker, and DemonDog 12-5 (70.6%)

20. 2*2*2 10-7 (58.8%)

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Now on to the next week. Week three has some very good matchups, but as a whole, I suspect that it will be a little easier week.

New Mexico (1-1) @ Arizona (1-1)

UCLA (2-0) @ Utah (0-2)

Idaho State (1-0) @ Oregon State (1-1)

Southern Cal (1-0) @ Nebraksa (2-0)

San Jose State (0-2) @ Stanford (0-1)

Ohio State (2-0) @ Washington (2-0)

Louisiana Tech (1-1) @ California (2-0)

Fresno State (1-1) @ Oregon (2-0)

San Diego State (0-1) @ Arizona State (2-0)

Idaho (1-1) @ Washington State (1-1)

Ten games to pick this week, gang. Remember, there is a new rule. As opposed to not counting your picks if you don't pick every game, a pick that is not made will be conceided and counted as a loss, so make sure you pick all ten games. Have fun.

DM14

Picks

Labels: CollegeFix, Dawgman14

Labels: CollegeFix, Dawgman14

Labels: CollegeFix, Dawgman14

Ok, it's time to get it going. Who is the most knowledgeable Pac 10 football fan in the College Fix family?

Beginning this week, and extending through the bowl games, we are engaging in a little contest. members will make predictions EVERY week for EVERY game a Pac 10 team plays in, and the person with the highest winning percentage at the end of the year will be listed as the College Fix Prognosticator of the Year!

What does this mean? Fame? Fortune? Nope... just some good 'ol fashioned bragging rights, as you will be known as the best prognosticator of our forum family for an entire year!

The Rules are simple... Make your picks every week. The picks must be in before the first game of the week starts to qualify. Either Global or myself will start up a thread (usually entitled PAC 10 predictions Week ___, or something to that effect).

The only other rule is that in recognition that you might not be available EVERY week, you must pick in at least 75% of the weeks to qualify... this way, we can still get an accurate gauge as to who is the best.

SCORING

The person with the highest percentage wins.

In the unlikely event of a tie, we will be looking at the bowl games. You must predict the pAC 10 BOWL games, AND the BCS CHAMPIONSHIP game along with a prediction of the score of each game. Then, we can look at your bowl record first, your pick for the BCS championship game second, the point spread of the BCS championship game third, and the total points scored in the BCS Championship game fourth.

I will attempt to post a running total of the scores on a weekly basis on the Front Page.

Understanding that I am human and make mistakes, if I am innaccurate, please send me a PM and I will look into it.

I will update this page early next week with the first round scores. As it stands today, there were only 13 people that are involved... Kenber, Waltham, SchuurmerCoug, Chi Dawgs, Frogmenrule, Go Dawgs, Coug LJ, Thai Cougs, 2*2*2, Global, Trojan Backer, Dawgfan, and myself.

I look forward to having more involvement in the upcoming weeks. Let's all get into this and have fun. It was so much fun last year, and guy from the PI column actually tracked it and posted results for us. Good luck. You're all playing for second!

Labels: CollegeFix, Dawgman14

Well, it's finally here. Less than one week and all of our waiting; all of our anticipation will be realized. No more practice, no more speculation... We will finally begin to get all of the answers to the questions we have. Is USC going to be as good as advertised? Will Oregon put it together for a full season? How much of a drop off will Cal have now that Marshawn Lynch is gone? Is Jake Locker going to be Jake The Great", or Jake "The Mistake"? Can Washington State's defense stop anyone enough for their great offense to keep them in games?...you get the idea.

Quickly, I thought I might lend my humble opinion as to how this season will play out, who will be bowl eligible, who will not and where we might find a few suprises along the way.

DM14's projected pac 10 finish

1. Southern cal

USC should be able to go 6-0 to start the season. The real test will be in their final six games when they play six consecutive bowl teams from last season. The only question is whether or not they can run through the second half of their schedule en route to another National Championship appearance. If USC finishes 12-0, there will be no doubt who is the number one team in the land is, considering their strength of schedule and their difficult second half.


I originally had Oregon State second and Cal third but with Straughter going out at OSU, I think Cal might be slightly better. Cal is going to have a very good running game behind a huge offensive line. they also have an experienced Quarterback making their offense seem "Juggernautish" from time to time. Their defense is equally tough as I believe the entire nation is going to see next week when they play Tennessee. This Cal team is good enough that if USC faulters just a bit, Cal might find themselves in a BCS bowl game.


OSU is going to have a phenomenal running game, but they will need it with the youth at Quarterback, and now, a lack of leadership at wide receiver. OSU will also have a strong defense, but their defense won't need to be on the calibre of USC or Cal because their ball control offense will keep the defense off the field and more fresh. OSU is going to have a few knocks, but overall, I look to them to continually improve throughout the season.


I had these two teams tied because they will be so similar and couldn't decide who to put on top. Oregon is likely to boast one of the best running attacks in the country and having a quarterback with an arm won't hurt. They will also have a very strong defense, particularly against the run. The only thing I believe they will lack is a solid pass defense, which will cost them a couple games in the pass-happy Pacific 10 conference.

As for UCLA, they will also boast a strong running game, but it's their passing offense that will make the biggest impact. This team has developed a very good short passing game that is indefensable. The only thing a defense can do is hit the receiver and prevent the add-on yardage. This will help their defense, which is already strong, to stay fresh, in much the same way as Oregon State. The challenge that UCLA will have is that defensively, like Oregon, they are going to give up some big plays as they are one of the few teams that still typically plays man-to-man on the receivers. Inconsistency will be the only challenge that Oregon and UCLA will have to fight with.


Yes, I put UW a bit higher than many would think. I did this because if one looks logically, they can see how much this team has improved over the past couple of years, and Willingham was doing this with Gilby's players. Now, most of the players are his recruits and they have bought into the system. The most important member to a team is its Quarterback, and with Jake Locker aboard, I think he will prove to be the real deal. I have a firm belief that you can predict a teams success by looking at how their Quarterback did in high school. Stanback, for instance, played his highschool ball at Garfield, and although he was talented, his teams won a total of SEVEN games in three years. that trend continued at UW. Now, with Locker, he played his high school ball at ferndale, who only lost five games in three years. Simply put, Locker doesn't know how to lose. The only question is whether or not it will become evident this year or next. I'm betting on this year. Remember, UW could lose all four non-conference games and it has no bearing on their placement in the Pac 10. In the end, All Pac 10 teams have the same strength of schedule after factoring out the non conference schedule. It's going to be interesting as to whether or not UW qualifies for a bowl. With a thirteen game schedule, they will need to have a final record of 7-6 or better. I look for UW to be either 7-6 or 6-7, but sinceI have only predicted five other teams for bowls, I think adding a sixth is accurate given the tough conference, and realistically, it could be UW, ASU, or WSU... any of them have the ability to play better than I am predicting.

ASU is going to be an interesting team to watch. I think that they will have a phenomenal offense, led by Rudy Carpenter,, but once again, can their defense stop anyone.? Typically, ASU defenses have started off well, but have been easy to figure out and exploit. That has also been true for Dennis Erickson teams, so I thing that this defense will be solid but will have their challenges too. The offense will be great but will make a lot of mistakes, as can be expected in the first year of a new offense. The mistakes should cost them at least three Pac 10 games including games against Washington AND Washington State.



Arizona will have a solid defense but their offense is going to continue to be a mess. They have some senior leadership and a solid quarterback, but they have neglected to recruit the best friend for any quarterback... a weak side offensive lineman. this means that Titama is going end up on his butt a lot of he is going to be throwing on the run a lot, either way, it is not a good situation as Tuitama is very marginal when it comes to throwing on the run.

Stanford may have a bit of talent but have you every heard of not giving poster board material to your opponent. Apparently Jim Harbaugh, the ego-centric, ex NFL, new head coach for Stanford, hasn't and I thing every team is going to make his team pay for his mouth. Aside from that, Stanford resembles more of an Ivy League football team than they do a Pac 10 team. Add to that, they lost their only good player last year (Trent Edwards) and I see a team destined for zero wins in the Pac 10 for 2007 (unless they beat UW again :)).


Top Quarterback..... Nate Longshore (Cal)
Top Runningback..... Jonathan Stewart (Oregon)
Top Wide receiver.... Jaison Williams (Oregon)
Top Freshman (offense)... Jake Locker (Washington)
Top freshman (defense)...Everson Griffen (USC)

Pac 10 Player of the Year... Nate Longshore

Bowl Teams... LOCKS...USC, Cal, Oregon State, Oregon, UCLA

Plus one... Either UW, Arizona State, or Washington State

Let's get ready to RUMBLE!!!

DM14

Comments

Labels: CollegeFix, Dawgman14

Through our lives, we grow up as professional sports fans. Whether it be professional baseball, basketball, or football, our country has been captivated by the thought of World Championships, as it reinforces to us, as a nation that we are the best in the world, despite the fact that much of these games are played in other countries as well.

Still, something has happen that has changed this culture. It all started maybe twenty years ago when I could no longer go to a ball game and lean over the dugout to get an autograph. The salaries started going up, and the availability of the athletes went down. Players were no longer one of us. People like Pete Rose began actually charging people for autographs. Mean Joe Greene would no longer trade his jersey for a coke, and the kid was perminently stuck in the pepsi bottle.

Labels: CollegeFix, Dawgman14

We finish our tour of the Pac 10 offenses Pullman, Washington as we look at our final Pac 10 offense; the Washington State Cougars.

As with many of the Pac 10 offenses, this Pac 10 team has a lot of talent, especially on the passing end, but have a lot of inexperience as well...particularly on the offensive line.

It all begins with experienced Quarterback Alex Brink. Brink has had a lot of success thoughout his career at WSU but has also tended to make mistakes at inopportune times, leading to the Wazzu faithful to look past him for the next Cougar Super-quarterback. Personally, I have always thought much of the criticism of Brink has been unfounded.

In 2006, Brink had a passing rating of 133% as he completed 61% of his passes. To add, Brink had 19 touchdaowns against just 10 interceptions, very decent figures for a quarterback on a .500 team. In 2007, I look for Brink to have a lot of success at it appears that he will have five viable options to throw to, as opposed to just three last season. this should be a breakout year for Brink as I expect him to challenge for Pac 10 honors on some level.

At Wide Receiver, WSU should be fine despite the loss of All-Pac 10 Wide Receiver Jason Hill. The primary option for the Cougs is certain to be Michael Bumpus, as he has all the ability to be All Conference Wide out. To add, I look for Brandon Gibson to have a very strong year as a second option, and we might even find a nice suprise in JC transfer Finas Rabb. All in all, I think the wide receiver position is in fine hands. This crop looks to play faster and taller than the crop from a year ago.

Running back is a bit of a challenge for Washington State. They return Dwight Tardy, who rushed for nearly 700 yards last season, but still, for a team in the Pac 10 to be successful, they need to average over 130 yards rushing per game. This was one of the reasons for the challenges WSU had last year. Although it could be a problem, I look for WSU to get some major help from DeMaundray Woolridge and Kevin McCall. Specifically, I see a good possibility that McCall will utilize his speed and strength to be very productive at times against teams with slower defensive ends.

The offensive line appears to be the make-it-or-break-it for WSU. This unit, comprised of Bobby Byrd, Micah Hannam, Dan Rowlands, Andy Roof, and Kenny Alfred, is both smaller and less experienced than other Pac 10 teams, averaging just 298 pounds and 1 year of experience. This group needs to be very fast and very strong to hold off the defensive lines that will be coming at them, which leads me to think that this group might be a year away from really holding down the fort. The largest Offensive lineman is Bobby Byrd (316 pounds) and hopefully he will function on the left side, otherwie, Brink might have a rough time staying healthy without having some bulk to protect his blind side.

With the kicking duties, WSU will use Romeen Abdollmohammadi (say that five times fast0, who was perfect last season in limited duty.

Basically, the success of Washington State is going to come down to how well their offensive line performs. If these kids are unable to play bigger and better than their size and experience would suggest, they will be unable to protect Brink or open up holes, and as we have seen, Brink isn't alwaysat his best if he has no time to throw the ball. Moreover, the running game will suffer dramatically to. On the other hand, if they can hold down the defenses, we can expect a free flowing, point producing offense that will challenge any offense in the Pac 10

I look for Washington State to struggle early in the season, and continually improve as the year goes on with an outside chance of going bowling, but if they do, their success will lie firmly on the shoulders of Alex brink and the ability of the offensive line to protect him.

Comments

DM14

Labels: CollegeFix, Dawgman14

Continuing our trek across the great Northwest, we find ourselves in Seattle, Washington for our second to last stop to analyze the Pac 10 offenses.

The UW offense is clearly the most difficult to look at as there are A LOT of question marks surrounding a very talented bunch of individuals with very little, if any college paying experience.

So let's get the big question out of the way first... Can Jake "The Great" Locker bring UW back to respectability? I guess the best way to address this is to look into his past. Here's a kid who has won state championship and only lost five games in his entire high school career. Now, many of you who know me, know that I deeply believe that looking at the past is the easiest way to predict the future. A winner in high school generally wins in college.

This kid has proven he has the talent level and the maturity to be the greatest quarterback in UW history. Heck, even Hugh Millen wrote that Locker could be the greatest pound-for-pound athlete in UW history. That's the good news. The bad news is that he hasn't done anything yet and he inherits a solid team but a team trying to compete against a lot of Pac 10 teams who have improved themselves immensely... Oh, and there's that other thing about UW having the toughest schedule in the country in 2007. Basically what I'm saying is that we shouldn't expect too much from Locker in 2007. Heck we don't even know he'll start. there is that other guy...you know, Carl Bonnell? The guy who led UW to a big victory in the Apple Cup and was clearly playing his best ball at the end of 2006? Either way, I will say that the quarterback position is in solid hands but I would personally rather see Bonnell as the starter for 2007, perhaps holding back my enthusiasm for Jake Locker until the 2008 campaign.

Now, on to the running backs where there is even more question marks. UW is absolutely LOADED at the running back position, but once again, there is so much youth and inexperience, it is impossible to know how they'll perform. The only thing UW fans know to expect is that Louis Rankin is going to be a very functional back in 2007. His challenge continues to be an inability to run North/South and use his size and strength to punish the opposing line, although he impressed a lot of people with his Spring performance. Still, Rankin appears, at times, to be trying to avoid hits and that is troublesome to me. Then there is JR Hasty, probably the best natural back in the bunch and he appears to finally be ready to go in 2007. The big question here is what can we expect from a back who has sat out three years? If Hasty actually hits the playing field this season, we shouldn't expect much until the second half when he gets his legs under him.

To add to the questions, UW boasts a trio of phenom running backs out of highschool, Brandon Johnson, Curtis Shaw, and Willie Griffin. The word is that one of these backs will get significant playing time and at least one shoudl red-shirt. My money is on Brandon Johnson to play, as he seems to be the most polished of the backs out of highschool.

At Tight-end, UW fans should finally get a good look at Chris Izbicki. While Johnnie Kirton might still be the starter, don't expect that to last long. Kirton has been an average tight end at a school known for producing them, and Izbicki is supposedly everything Willingham and coaches have looked for. he is an exceptional blocker and route runner, with exceptional hands, which is going to help out the youthful running game as well as giving Locker/Bonnell an outlet. Of all the changes for 2007, seeing Izbicki play is what I am most excited about.

Wide Receiver should see a marked improvement in 2007. UW will boast five senior receivers in Anthony Russo, Corey Williams, Quintin Daniels, Marcel Reese, and Cody Ellis. All of these receivers showed marked improvement throughout 2006, with the leaders being Russo, Reese, and Williams after their strong Spring showings, and they will now have a more accurate passer to get them the ball, whether it be Locker or Bonnell. Add to the fold D'Andre Goodman, who is sure to be a very sure handed receiver and add to the quarterback options. The Wide receiver position is solid despite the confusing status of incumbent super-stud, Anthony Boyles, who appeared that he would not acedemically qualify to play for UW but is listed in both the media guide and the roster guide on the University's primary web site.

Still, if Boyle does play, it will turn what could be the deepest wide receiver unit in the Pac 10 into the best, as well.

The Offensive line, where it all begins, is fortunately the area with the fewest question marks for UW. There are literally eight talented offensive linemen to fill five positions. This is certainly not a luxury UW has had for the past four seasons. If the projected starters hold true, they will average a whopping 313 pounds (second biggest in the Pac 10) and most ot of them are seniors. This could be the biggest advantage to UW as it will help out every aspect of the UW offense. The big names to watch will be Ben Ossai, Ryan Tolar, Juan Garcia, Morgan Rosborough (who I don't have starting) and Jordan White-Frisbee. White-Frisbee has been injured for two full seasons and has not been able to live up to the hype surrounding him, but if he is healthy, this 6'6" 320 pound frame can only help an offensive line.

Finally, the kicking game is likely to showcase the return of Ryan Perkins. Perkins has also been out but is going to return in 2007, but with the arrival of Jared Ballman to punt, Perkins is likely to only see PK duties.

So here's my take. I think that this will be the best UW offense we have seen in five years. I believe that offensively, UW is a bowl team and should be able to have a winning record FINALLY, mostly due to the offensive line, BUT the the challenges cannot be ignored. If Locker starts and struggles or if the corps of running backs can't get it going, it could be another long season for the UW offense. Still, I think the bigger challenge, at least for this season, will be how the defense performs against the toughest offenses in the country. That will ultimately decide whether or not UW goes Bowling for the first time in several years.

Labels: CollegeFix, Dawgman14

Well, we continue our trip north across the Pac 10 and visit Corvallis to see what Oregon State has going on.

2006 was a strange and exciting year for coach Mike Riley and company, and they saw their football team start off 0-3, then ran off 10 wins in 11 games, to finish with their third best record in Oregon State football history, at 10-4.

2007 looks to have the possibility of being just as good if not better, but be aware that there are some question marks that need to be addressed.
This oregon State team returns 18 starters from it 2006 squad, and eight of those starters are on the offense side of the ball.

Clearly, the strength of this team resides in its offensive line. The Beavs boast incredible size and talent that can rival any team in the country, and I believe is the best in the Pac 10, hands down. Jeremy Perry anchors to Offensive line. A pre season All-America for 2007, this kid is huge (6'2" 313 pounds) strong and quick and rarely lets anyone get by him, but it doesn't stop there. OSU returns four of their five Offensive line starters from 2006 and they average 316 pounds per lineman. If they have an achillies heel, it would be at Left Tackle with Tavita Thompson, being that he lacks the experience of the rest of the O-Line, but with him sitting next to Perry, I'm sure he'll get enough help to offset his inexperience.

The Wide Receiver position should be a strength for OSU. Returning All-Pac 10 wide out Sammy Stroughter might garner All-America suppost this season. In 2006, Stroughter had a whopping 74 receptions for 1293 yards, the best statistics for any pac 10 receiver. unlike last season, however, it doesn't stop with Stroughter. Brandon Powers should improve on his 39 reception, 430 yard season from a years ago, but the big news is that Anthony Wheat-Brown is healthy and ready to go. in 2005, Brown had 40 receptions for 400 yards and 3 touchdowns. If he stays healthy in 2007, he should provide a very nice second option for the very inexperienced Quarterbacks for OSU.

The Quarterback position is the biggest question mark for Oregon State. Ryan Gunderson is the only returning quarterback with any starts under his bealt, but it appears that upstart junior Sean Canfield will be the starter. Given the inexperience of Canfield, and the tendancy for OSU quarterbacks to make crutial mistakes, I look for them to limit the passing game somewhat and focus a little more on using the offensive line to open up holes for their excellent running game.

At running back, there is only one name to know... Yvenson Bernard. He tows the rock more than anyone in the Pac 10 and this is unlikely to change in 2007. Last season, Bernard carried the ball nearly 300 times for over 1300 yards. I look for similar production this season, maybe even better with the extra experience on the O-line, the blocking ability of full back Micah Strickland, and the inexperience of Canfield at QB. the number of carries bernard has will directly correlate with the success Canfield has getting the ball to Stroughter.

The kicking game is a bit of a wild card. Alexis Serna is a solid kicker, and nearly always gets a good foot on the ball, but he has been inconsistent. In 2006, Serna hit all of his PAT's, but was just 21 for 28 in FG attempts, missing two each from inside 30, inside 40, and inside 50 yards.
Still, he has a big upside if he can improve on his accuracy a bit, because he rarely flubs kicks or has them blocked.

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Well, I couldn't get out of Palo Alto soon enough. Now, it's time to continue our treck north into the great state of Oregon, and our first stop is in Eugene.

Now, I know that many of you are die hard Duck fans and are much more knowledgable about your team than I ever hope to be through the various articles and depth charts that I go through, so I fully expect to get a lot of comments on this one... please, be gentle!

It appears that Oregon is going to be a very well balanced team yet again, with the ground game paving the way. At Quarterback, it appears that Dennis Dixon has a firm hold on the #1 slot over Brady Leaf, and looks to get a heavy majority of the playing time this season, as opposed to the often rotating quarterback scheme that Bellotti used last season. If this ends up being the case, it is a VERY smart move by Belotti.

The illusion is that Leaf is the thrower and Dixon is the runner; Dixon, being the more explosive player, tends to get more playing time. The truth is, however, that Dixon is actually a better runner AND a better passer than is Leaf. Simply put, he is just better and their should be no waffling about it.

Last season, Dixon had a quarterback ranking of 120 on his way to completing 61% of his passes. The completion percentage is good, and the ranking is a bit above average (the national ranking average for quarterbacks generally runs in the 110 to 115 range. Brady Leaf, on the other hand, completed just 55% of his passes and had a ranking of just 112. Now, rankings aren't everything, but in this case, I believe they it, along with the rest of the package tells the story... Dennis Dixon is the man.

The good news is that if he gets injured, Oregon has a more than capable backup, which aside from Washington, and USC isn't a very common benefit in the Pac 10 this season.

The Running back position is obviously Oregon's strength. Running behind an offensive line that will average 310 pounds is likely to generate success for any back, but when your back is Jonathan Stewart, it can be devastating for opposing defenses.

Last year, Stewart rushed for just shy of 1000 yards, but he was also injured for a spell. This year, he is likely to easily surpass 1000 yards, and may even approach the 1500 yard plateau, which would set the stage for a senior year Heisman campaign. Stewart's size, speed, and stength make him clearly the best back in the Pac 10 this season, but it doesn't stop with Stewart. Jeremiah Johnson has also proven to be a very good back, as last year, in limited duty, he rushed for 650 yards and matched Stewart for the team lead with 10 touchdowns. If that isn't enough, say hello to Andre Crenshaw, the best kept secret in the Oregon arcenal. If you don't know him now, you will by the end of this season. This sophomore is lightning quick and very explosive. If he gets enough playing time, I look for Crenshaw to see the end zone at least seven or eight times (either by running it or catching it) and most of these times will be from plays of twenty yards or more.

At wide receiver, there is only one name to look at, Jaison Williams. 68 receptions for 984 yards last season was among the best in the pac 10 and he was only a sophomore. In a conference full of extremely talented receivers, I believe that this kid is the best. Of course, Oregon also can brag about another receiver that may have a break out year, with stats that could rival Williams. Brian Paysinger had 44 receptions for nearly 500 yards in 2006, so he is hardly a slouch. Paysinger and Williams will give opposing corners and safties fits this season.

The truth is that the wide receiver position is where Oregon has the best depth and behind Williams and Paysinger, they have Cameron Colvin, Garren Strong, and Ryan Mattice (two seniors and a junior) all of which are sure handed, play tall, and have break away speed, which is a good thing with Dixon's tendancy of sailing the ball a bit when he throws on roll outs.

The Tight end position is generally not a focus as a recever for Oregon so Ed Dickson might only catch five or six catches in 2007, but he is a big body and is a very good blocker, which, of course, helps out the running game and Dixon, in particular, when he tries to get outside.

Quickly, the offensive line, as I mentioned is going to average about 310 pounds and ironically, it will be anchored by the smallest of the bunch. Josh Tgchirgi is a potential All-America at left guard and with the added experience and size of the rest of the line, they will push around smaller defenses at will, opening up lanes for Stewart and company big enough for a Mac truck to roll through.

If Oregon has any challenges on the offensive line, it would be with starting Jeff Kendall at Center. He is experienced but at 297 pounds, he is undersized as centers go. He's got to be awefully strong to keep himself from being pushed out of the middle, and if he gets injured, Oregon would need to rely on a freshman with no playing experience at the heart of the offensive line.

The only real offensive question mark for Oregon is with their kicking game. Oregon appears to be starting Morgan Flint at kicker, and the only kicker with any experience, Matt Everson, has been demoted to third on the depth chart. Does this mean that Flint is that good or is Oregon going to struggle with the kicking game, the more well informed Duck fans have a better insight to that. Keep in mind that Everson was just 6 for 6 in PAT's and just 1 for 3 in FG attempts in 2006, so he hardly had a boat load of experience, himself.

Basically, it comes down to this. For a defense to hold down this offense, they must have big, strong, and fast defensive linemen and line backers. They must have exceptionally good cover corners and safeties that can act as stop-gaps, to effectively eliminate the quick slants. I can see teams like USC, California, and maybe UCLA having enough defensive prowess to do this but aside from them, it's going to be difficult for any other Pac 10 team to hold Oregon under 35 points per game, and that should lead to a very good 2007 for the Ducks.

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Well, We continue moving up the coast to the northern half of the Pac 10. The logical place to start is with the other central California team, the Stanford Cardinal.

There has been a fairly significant amount of hype surrounding this Stanford team, but unfortunately for them, it is only hype and it is for all the wrong reasons.

After a series of dismal seasons Stanford finally chooses to make a coaching change, so they bring in NFL veteran, Jim Harbaugh. This sounds like a great move, right? Well, in the immortal words of Lee Corso, "Not so fast, my friends".

Of all of the things Harbaugh needs to do in order to rebuild a once solid football tradition, what does he do first? This idiot decides to incite Jim Carroll and insult the entire USC Football program by stating publicly that they are over-rated, and has been for years. he added that he believes his team can compete with them. Can you say 63-0 next season?

The truth is that beyond this moron, Stanford has a host of challenges and unless Harbaugh is the second coming as a head coach, they are almost certainly destined to be in the Pac 10 cellar, as they will not even have as much on the field talent as last years last place Pac 10 team. Remember UW's offense two years ago? This Stanford team has significantly less offensive talent. How does that sum it up?

Simply put, Stanford lost their only NFL quality player, in Trent Edwards. and has almost no experienced talented players on the field.

They seem to be so bad that their rosters have not been updated to reflect the 2007 season ON THEIR OWN WEB SITE! Therefore, I deeply apologize if there are holes in my research.

Not much to analyze here, but quickly, at Quarterback, they will likely start TC Ostander. TC was an exceptional quarterback in highschool, but now, it is unclear whether he has graduated or is still there, as he is listed as a fifth year senior (who has never been redshirted). Therefore, to be honest, I'm just not sure. If he's not there, it will be an unproven Tavita Pritchard at the QB helm.

Assuming the rest of the information I obtained is accurate, at running back they will be showcasing Toby Gerhart, who is a relatively immobile running back but at 229 pounds, is a bit of a load to get down.

At wide receiver, the good news is that Stanford will be returning two of their top three receivers. The bad news is that neither of them had much success in 2006. Richard Sherman, Stanford's top returning receiver, had only 34 receptions for 580 yards and 3 touchdowns, while on the other side, Kelton Lynn had just 19 receptions for 250 yards and 2 touchdowns. Hardly what I would call intimidating.

The logical thing to assume here is that with no quality wide receivers, they must have had a solid tight end, right? Well, not really. Jim Dray will be returning at Tight End, but he only had 19 receptions himself, so he is hardly a receiver you need to game plan around.

Last years offensive line for stanford was the absoluite worst I have ever seen for a Pac 10 team, making a quality, NFL -type Quarterback like Trent Edwards look like a JV quarterback, and they don't appear that they will fare much better in 2007. The only alluring aspect of their line is that they have beefed up a bit by moving Gustav Rydsted (6'3" 300 pounds) from defense to offense, bringing their average on the offensive line up near 290 Pounds, and they do have one excellent offensive tackle, Allen Smith. Smith could be a darkhorse for All Pac-10 honors in 2007, but with the huge and talented offensive lines of Cal, ASU, USC, Washington, and others, even that would seem like a longshot.

So what do they have going for them? What about their kicker? He must be great, right? well, in 2006 Aaron Zagory was 13 for 15 in PAT's and 8 for 13 in FG attempts, so maybe not.

Basically, it comes down to this... Stanford is ripe for a bowl bid, if their defense is strong enough to hold opponents to between 3 and 7 points a game... Frankly, I can't see this offense average more than 10. I just hope that whoever lands the starting quarterback job has good insurance.


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Continuing up the coast, we now visit the land of Berkenstocks and Tye-dye shirts. Berkley, California is still an interesting place for me that has no business being a competitor in the land of college football. Of course, that was largely true before Jeff Tedford arrived. Tedford will be fielding another very talented team and is likely to compete for major bowl bids. This team, however, has a couple question marks on offense, unlike many of his teams of recent years. First we will explore the strengths of their offense.

First, like many of the teams in the Pac 10, their level of their success, offensively, lies squarely on the back of their extremely talented Quarterback, Nate Longshore. Longshore will be entering his Junior season as one of the favorites for Pac 10 Player of the Year. In 2006, as a Sophomore, Longshore had a phenomenal season with a 141Quarterback rating, throwing for over 3000 yards and threw 24 touchdowns against just 13 interceptions. This, after sitting out the previous season with a knee injury. I see All-America written all over this guy for 2007.

The Running back position looks to rebound well with Justin Forsett taking over the primary rock carrying responsibilities with Marshawn Lynch going to the next level. Last year, we got a glimpse of Forsett when Lynch was injured and Cal actually average MORE YARDS rushing with him in the back field. This kid is tough, strong, and even faster than Lynch. Last year, in limited time, Forsett rushed for over 600 yards averaging 5.3 yards per carry. With the experience of the offensive line, I look for Forsett to approach the 1500 yard rushing mark in 2007.

The Receivers are the strength of the Cal offense. Their Top FOUR receivers all return, and this should make their passing game that much more devestating to opponents. DeSean Jackson is their staple, last year with 59 receptions for over 1000 yards and 9 touchdowns. It doesn't stop with Jackson, however. Cal also boasts two of the best deep threats in the country in LaVelle Hawkins and Robert Jordan, who are both lighning fast with great break-away speed. Between the two of them, they added nearly 1300 yards and 9 more touchdowns in 2006. Finally, they have an experienced Tight End in Craig Stevens, who is not only a load to get down, he can catch and block. In 2006 Stevens added 17 receptions for over 200 yards, but is sparingly used inside the opponents 20 yard line because of his excellent blocking ability and the great running game that Cal boasts every year.

The Offensive line is going to be solid as always. They will be experienced and large, although they will be a bit lighter than in recent years, averaging a mere 305 pounds per lineman. The starters to watch will be Mike Gibson and Brian De La Puente. The Left Tackle and Guard are both seniors and will anchor the line in such a way to protect Longshore's blind side and provide lots of running lanes on the left side. Clearly, the challenge for defenses is to run a lot of stunts on the left side to try and neutralize them because it will be no secret that the majority of Cal's offense will run behind these two linemen.

Finally, the kicking game.Tom Schneider is likely to be an All-America this year. Simply put, he is an exceptional kicker. In 2006, Schneider hit on all 46 PAT's, never missed a field goal attempt inside 40 yards and missed only one kick inside 50 yards.

So what question marks do we have for Cal? Not many, but one question I have is their depth. In the past, this hasn't been a challenge but it seems to be this season.

If Longshore goes down with an injury, their second quarterback is either going to be Kyle Reed or Kevin Riley. Neither player has had any realistic playing time. With the graduation of Joseph Ayoob, it will be that much more important for Longshore to stay healthy.

At running back, behind Forsett, you'll find a host of players with little or no experience, so it is hard to know what you will get. The likiest person to be successful, should Forsett go down, is James Montgomery. This redshirt freshman was a juggernaut in highschool and Tedford and company is likely to find ways to get him the ball whenever they can.

The biggest depth challenge that Cal might have is on the offensive line. These backups are relatively light and very green. Theoretically, if all of the back up linemen were forced to play, their average size would drop to about 285 pounds (relatively small for an offensive line).

Still, these challenges are unlikely to occur, at least to any major degree, so I look for Cal to have another great year under one of the best coaches in the country.

Labels: CollegeFix, Dawgman14

Last week, we dove into the desert to look at the Arizona Wildcats offense. This week, we take a look at an offense that is likely to be a whole lot more explosive and dangerous, the ASU Sun Devils.

Arizona State will be boasting one of the most dangerous offenses in the Pac 10 in 2007. This team might have an absense of a power rushing game, but that's just about where their deficiencies might end as they will be loaded with veteran talent, speed, and depth, that should make them extremely difficult to shut down on the offensive side of the ball in 2007.

For starters, according to my calulations, ASU will have the largest front five in the Pac 10 (if not the country), averaging a whopping 323 pounds per lineman. If that's not enough, they probably have the best center in the country in Mike Pollak, who is a legitamate All-America candidate. They will also have experience on the offensive line, with three seniors, one junior, and one sophomore, all with starting experience.

At the skill positions, it all begins with Rudy Carpenter. Last year, Carpenter had too much youth, and a big mess caused with the previous coach and the quarterback contoversy he caused. This year, those challenges are in the past, and Carpenter, has a host of talented, and lightning quick receivers to throw to.

The best of the bunch might be Michael Jones, who led all wide receivers in 2006, with 20 catches for over 300 yards. Now, that might not sound like much, but given the fact that Carpenter used his Tight End mostly last season, I look for him to utilize the deep passing game much more under the guidance of Dennis Erickson, who is known for letting the reigns off of his quarterbacks. The biggest threat, however, that I see from the passing game comes from Rudy Burgess. Burgess has been mostly a return man through his career, but apparently, he has made huge progress and they are expecting him to really emerge as the Devils' deep threat this season. If he does this as well as returning kicks, the Pac 10 could be in for some long days!

The best part of this Sun Devil Offense might be their ball control abilities on third down. Last year, they were good on third down because of a solid running attack, and this year won't be any different. Of course it helps that they have Brent Miller back for his senior season. Miller, at Tight End, led all receivers with 50 receptions in 2006. This number might go down in 2007, with the emergence of some speedy receivers, but if not, Miller might be also on the short list for All-America honors.

Finally, we can look at the Runningbacks. Ryan Torain, who was the primary runningback or the Devils is gone, but now its Preston Jones' and Keegan Herring's turn to shine.

Preston Jones is a quick but undersized back who has the ability to make people miss if the massive offensive line prevents defenders from penetrating the line of scrimmage. Herring is going to assume the role vacated by Torain from last season, and the scary thing is that he might be better at it than Torain was. In a secondary role last season, the lightning fast Herring rushed for 550 yards and nearly six yards per carry. This kid can make you miss, and bull you over, and can out run you, and with that offensive line, I expect Herring to approach the 1500 yard barrier in 2007.

2007 appears from the offensive side of the ball like this might be a break through year for the Sun Devils. They will put up points and put up a lot of them. The question is whether or not the defense can hold down the other Pac 10 teams. If so, I expect an eight win season for ASU and a trip to the Vegas Bowl, with an outside shot at the Holiday Bowl, if they really get it rolling. Get your tickets now to watch this offense because they're going to be fun to watch, and difficult to stop.

DM14

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As we progress towards the 2007 Pac 10 season, we have taken a look at the offenses for USC and UCLA. Now, it's time to go east to the desert and look at the Arizona schools. Today, we will look att he offense of the Arizona Wildcats.

2006 was not friendly for Arizona, and they proved to be inexperienced, inconsistent, and injury-prone. Those three "I"'s end to spell disaster for any football program, but it was particularly troubling for Arizona who's defense started strong but faded late in the season.

First, we should look at what Arizona has going for them looking forward into the 2007 season.

At Quarterback, the team seems to live or die by their starter, Willie Tuitama, who is entering his Junior year, and his third year as starter. Tuitama has proven to have a good level of talent and can make things happen with his legs as much as his arm, but he is prone to injury because he tends to do too much and because the offensive line has not shown a consistent ability to hold off oncoming defenders. Tuitama has had a notable lack of receiving talent in the past couple of seasons, but that might be changing with the emergence of two Terrells; Terrell Turner, and Terrell Reese, both Red Shirt freshmen. These two receivers have some size to go along with their speed and should serve as a wonderful addition to Mike Thomas, who is ripe for an All Pac-10 kind of season, coming off of a 50 reception, 600 yards performance in 2006. Thomas will almost certainly be Tuitama's go-to-guy and if he can get Thomas the ball, Thomas looks to give some defensive backfield's fits in the upcoming season.

The other thing that Arizona has going for it is the very good recruiting classes of the last couple seasons. These classes should begin to pay dividends this season with the additions of Wide Receivers a new Left Guard (Daniel Borg), and most importantly, I highly skilled backup quarterback, should Tuitama go down with injury. Tyler Lyon looks to be the next quarterback to take up the reigns for Arizona and although he is inexperienced and not as talented as Tuitama at this point, Lyon would be less likely to make the big mistake that has plagued Tuitama through his previous two seasons.

Finally, the biggest asset to Arizona, yet again, is their kicker, Nicholas Folk. Last season, Folk hit on all of his extra points and 75% of his field goal attempts. I look for Lyon to challenge for All Pac 10 honors this season.

Arizona's biggest challenges remain the same, and there are new questions to be asked...

• Can Tuitama stay healthy?
• It looks like Arizona has a second and third receiving option this season, but they have no experience. How will they perform?
• They have a great Tight End with a lot of size (Travis Bell). Can they develope his hands or his blocking ability?
• Arizona loses it's top Running back (Chris Henry) so can Chris Jennings step in to be a big time player?
• The Ofensive line is still undersized, averaging just 288 pounds, and 6 ft 4 inches and are inexperienced with 2 sophomores, 1 Freshman, a junior, and a senior. They have more talent, but will they show it this year or are they a year away?
• Finally, will Tuitama show more poise and use his receivers IF his line can make a pocket for him?

After looking closely at the Arizona offense, my early opinion is that Tuitama, although better, will continue to make a lot of the same mistakes of the past, as I don't believe his offensive line will be able to hold off the defenses they will face. They have a possible All-America at Right guard in Joe Longacre, but the defenses can run stunts to the left side all day long and should force Tuitama out of the pocket often. On the bright side, the last couple seasons, defenses focused on rushing the right side of the offense, forcing Tuitama out to the left, where he has trouble throwing the ball with any accuracy. The right side of the offensive line should be the strength, so if Tuitama is forced out of the pocket, he should have much better results throwing with his body, as opposed to against it. Of course, this also opens him up to blind side hits, which could lead to another injury-prone season in 2007.

Finally, Mike Stoops is a good coach but is likely to be on the hot seat. Often times, this raises the level of the team, but in Arizona's case, I just don't think they have the necessary balance of talent and experience.

All in all, it appears to me, that if Arizona has any hope to be even a .500 team in 2007, they will be relying heavily on their defense, because offensively, they appear to have too many question marks and not all of them can turn up roses, can they?

DM14

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Keeping on with the theme of analyzing the offenses of the Pac 10, it is only fitting to look at UCLA's offense on the heels of USC's.

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Spring is here. So what does that mean? It means that basketball is over, baseball is just beginning, and football players, old and new, are renewed with excitement and expectations.

For last years seniors, they are through with the combines and looking forward to the possibility of playing at the next level. For the rest of last years college players, they are renewed with the possibility of greatness than only a new season can bring.

Come April 28th, we will all see what greatness can bring. JaMarcus Russell, from LSU, was a solid quarterback, but until last years bowl game, he was never looked at as a top ten pick. Now, he will almost certainly be the #1 pick for the Oakland Raiders. Conversely, Brady Quinn (everybody's All-American) will likely drop to #6 with Washington, if not lower. All of this because of their bowl game performances.

So what lies in store for the underclassmen? Most of us, being Pac 10 fans, can attest that USC is loaded, but can they be beat? As of right now, of course they can. No team is unbeatable.. especially before the first snap of the season. Too many things can happen between now and then. Spring is great that way... you can dream of broken legs and ACL tears to your opponents.

Until the season starts, we all have the chance to be superstars, and our teams have the chance to be National Champions. I'm sure if you think about it, you can look at your favorite team and think of a scenario, albeit unlikely, where they would go undefeated and win it all.

Yes, I know that we wouldn't be very realistic to think UW or WSU could really run the table, but hey, it's spring, the flowers are out, the sun is shining, the days are longer and this is the time to dream of the best in life.

Until UW loses, or our "savior" Jake Locker faulters, I'm going to view UW as the best team in America and believe that our players will play above their capabilities. Maybe Stewart wins the Heisman, maybe Wazzu has the next great Wide Receiver? Keep dreaming, guys, after all, that's what spring is for, and Lord knows, reality will set in soon enough.

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