Evening Ladies and Gents. I thought I would take this thing by the reigns and start an interesting thead. It will bascially entail the strategy, trends etc. of the team you know the most about. Hopefully it can provide insight on teams other than what you read on ESPN, Yahoo or see on a regular stat sheet. Hopefully this can also help us figure out why certain teams cover or won't cover and all of the 'inner' dealings of the team. While "inside" info certainly never guarantees a win, it is good to provide insight as to what a team may do. Best of luck to everyone!
Strategy Thread
- Thread starter Escrow_Tum
- Start date
NEBRASKA CORNHUSKERS
NEBRASKA CORNHUSKERS
While the Huskers may still be a name team, their name was dragged through the mud last year. This program is merely a shell of its former self since Frank Solich took over. Solich early success was largely due to former HC Tom Osborne leaving him with a full garage and DC Charlie McBride who was the best in the business at the time. Solich was also to have one of the most gritty, performers College Football has seen this decade in QB Eric Crouch. During the Tom Osborne Era, their recruiting was led by a man named Steve Pederson. Steve eventually left, and Frank Solich appointed his good friend Dave Gillespie to recruiting coordinator and RB coach. It is no coincidence that the Husker talent steadily started to ebb under Solich and Gillespie (who was a Kansas reject). While Solich was an excellent RB coach, he has proven time and again that he is NOT HC material. Huge changes have been made over the offseason, which was preceeded by the worst year in modern Husker history.
Steve Pederson is back as the AD. This has been considered a huge get by Husker Fans. We all saw what he did in recent years at Pitt University. In addition, he is emphasizing the old traditions that made the Huskers so great. Many agree that "dollar bill" former AD Bill Byrne was also largely responsible for the steady decline in the Husker Football program. Byrne time and again undermined Solich, recruiting and fed the lesser sports.
The Huskers have also made a bevy of coaching changes. Gone:
RE Coach Nelson Barnes. This guy might have been one of the worst coaches at any position in Division 1-A. Texas didn't want him and I don't know why Tom Osborne hired him, but the RE position once a hallmark under the Huskers became paltry under his watch. Want further proof of his ineptitude? He has landed an assistant coaching job with a NAIA school in Western
Nebraska. A far cry from the show.
DB Coach George Darlington: Many felt it was time for him to go, but he landed at Marshall with Bob Pruitt. He turned out some very good players in his tenure. He never got along well with Solich or former DC Craig Bohl.
DC/LB Coach Craig Bohl. He was actually recommended for the job by former DC Charlie Mc Bride and was a good linebackers coach under his watch. However his schemes were way too complicated, his players hated him, did not respect him and he was not a solid citizen. He comitted many acts of adultry with students and a few other interesting people. He was actually on the hot seat in 2002 but not for his performance, but the aforementioned issues. The defensive players blew a big collective sigh of relief when Craig was handed his pink slip. He has since landed the HC job with Division II North Dakota State.
OL Coach Milt Tenopir. The players flat out loved "Uncle Miltie" but his health was declining badly and he was not getting along well with Solich at the end of the line either. Milt had a big hand in calling the plays and that whole situation was an absolute clusterphuck. Some say he was actually forced to retire, and he wanted to coach one more year.
K/Special Teams Coach Dan Young. Was an all around good guy but felt it was his time to go.
I will have much more on their replacements.
NEBRASKA CORNHUSKERS
While the Huskers may still be a name team, their name was dragged through the mud last year. This program is merely a shell of its former self since Frank Solich took over. Solich early success was largely due to former HC Tom Osborne leaving him with a full garage and DC Charlie McBride who was the best in the business at the time. Solich was also to have one of the most gritty, performers College Football has seen this decade in QB Eric Crouch. During the Tom Osborne Era, their recruiting was led by a man named Steve Pederson. Steve eventually left, and Frank Solich appointed his good friend Dave Gillespie to recruiting coordinator and RB coach. It is no coincidence that the Husker talent steadily started to ebb under Solich and Gillespie (who was a Kansas reject). While Solich was an excellent RB coach, he has proven time and again that he is NOT HC material. Huge changes have been made over the offseason, which was preceeded by the worst year in modern Husker history.
Steve Pederson is back as the AD. This has been considered a huge get by Husker Fans. We all saw what he did in recent years at Pitt University. In addition, he is emphasizing the old traditions that made the Huskers so great. Many agree that "dollar bill" former AD Bill Byrne was also largely responsible for the steady decline in the Husker Football program. Byrne time and again undermined Solich, recruiting and fed the lesser sports.
The Huskers have also made a bevy of coaching changes. Gone:
RE Coach Nelson Barnes. This guy might have been one of the worst coaches at any position in Division 1-A. Texas didn't want him and I don't know why Tom Osborne hired him, but the RE position once a hallmark under the Huskers became paltry under his watch. Want further proof of his ineptitude? He has landed an assistant coaching job with a NAIA school in Western
Nebraska. A far cry from the show.
DB Coach George Darlington: Many felt it was time for him to go, but he landed at Marshall with Bob Pruitt. He turned out some very good players in his tenure. He never got along well with Solich or former DC Craig Bohl.
DC/LB Coach Craig Bohl. He was actually recommended for the job by former DC Charlie Mc Bride and was a good linebackers coach under his watch. However his schemes were way too complicated, his players hated him, did not respect him and he was not a solid citizen. He comitted many acts of adultry with students and a few other interesting people. He was actually on the hot seat in 2002 but not for his performance, but the aforementioned issues. The defensive players blew a big collective sigh of relief when Craig was handed his pink slip. He has since landed the HC job with Division II North Dakota State.
OL Coach Milt Tenopir. The players flat out loved "Uncle Miltie" but his health was declining badly and he was not getting along well with Solich at the end of the line either. Milt had a big hand in calling the plays and that whole situation was an absolute clusterphuck. Some say he was actually forced to retire, and he wanted to coach one more year.
K/Special Teams Coach Dan Young. Was an all around good guy but felt it was his time to go.
I will have much more on their replacements.
TEXAS CHRISTIAN UNIVERSITY
TEXAS CHRISTIAN UNIVERSITY
I'm new to the forum but can help y'all out with my TCU preview, being an ex-student. Let's get some more input from other fans out there from other teams. This is a great thread idea by escrow, and I know a lot of y'all from over the country could help us out!!!
TEXAS CHRISTIAN UNIV.
QB: Tye Gunn is a sophomore QB who will attempt to recover from a brutal ACL injury last October from the nationally televised trouncing against Southern Miss. All indications are he is healthy, and TCU plays on grass which will be better for his knee recovery. Last year, Gunn replaced ineffective Sean Stilley who suffered an injury. When Stilley recovered, Gunn did not lose his job and led TCU's once-stagnant offense to an average of 38 points a game. The backup situation is very shaky if Gunn's knee gives him problems. Junior Brandon Hassell, once heavily recruited, still has yet to grasp TCU's offense. The x-factor may be true freshman dual-threat QB James Battle, who TCU signed in a coup over other schools like Tennessee.
RB: This might be one of the top RB corps in the NCAA this year (don't laugh!!). Lonta Hobbs ran for 1029 yards and 12 touchdowns in just 8 games. He averaged 6.6 ypc. The coaching staff had no intentions of playing him in 2002 until the team put up pitiful performances in the first four games on the ground. Hobbs is a home run threat and can also carry the ball 30-35 times a game if need be. After his first game he told a reporter that he thought college football was easier than high school. (Which may be true for him, he played for a moribund HS team and never rushed for 1,000 yds in a high school season... Still TCU got him over Oklahoma) Ricky Madison ran for over 700 yards last year. He has trouble as a feature back, but as the change-of-pace back with Hobbs, he can wear down opposing defenses. Corey Connally is a senior who has made quite a few starts in the last 2 years. He is not a breakaway threat. One player who might come out of nowhere is Robert Merrill, a redshirt freshman. He ran for nearly 3000 yards in his final high school season in Texas. Most prospect lists don't change once the high school season starts, so that's why Merrill has a low prospect ranking. Don't let it fool you. Players have remarked on the side that Merrill is the best RB on the team. He looked AWESOME in the spring game against TCU's phenomenal run-stuffing defense. Former USA Today All-American and Longhorn transfer Kenny Hayter will likely move to fullback.
WR: These guys are rarely used in offensive coordinator Mike Schultz's schemes. 2 WRs were draft picks in '02. Reggie Harrell is 6'3" and also a track star but has recurring hamstring injuries and doesn't have a good set of hands. While most mags have Kevin Brown returning for a 6th year of eligibility, don't count on it. Redshirt frosh Michael DePriest runs a 4.3 40 yd dash. The receiving corps is extremely weak and could hurt TCU against a run-stuffing defense like So. Miss. TE Cody McCarty might become a favorite target of Gunn's.
OL: Weightlifting coach Don Sommer turns average high school prospects into behemoths in the weightroom. All the starting linemen can max out at 500 lbs on the bench. The depth is a little thin with graduation, but new guys seem to step up every year. If the field is sloppy, TCU has a great advantage.
DL: Rated one of the best in the country by numerous mags, TCU's DL was #1 in the country giving up just 2.0 yards a carry. 7 of 8 from the 2-deep are back.
LB: With Butkus finalist LaMarcus McDonald's questionable decision to leave for the NFL (he wasn't drafted) this corps will be down a few notches. TCU runs a 4-2-5 defense. Still, the linebacking group is thin. Josh Goolsby and Martin Patterson are the projected starters.
DB: TCU's three best DBs graduated, leaving some large holes in the secondary. Marvin Godbolt is a safety who is a run-stopping terror in addition to being great in coverage. He beat the daylights out of Eric Crouch on blitzes in his first game as a freshman in Lincoln. It was Crouch's worst game of his Heisman season. Tyrone Sanders is a returning starter, but he will need to improve on single coverage on deep balls. He got burned at least once a game by speedy receivers. The rest played little last year and will have to step up. Against throwing QBs (Wimprine, Guidugli, Ragone, Troth) TCU had problems in 2002, and it looks to be the same way this year.
ST: Nick Browne, a walk-on from the soccer team, was a finalist for the Lou Groza Award. Except in clutch situations, he was automatic in '02. He missed a potential game-tying field goal against East Carolina, a field goal in the bowl game against Memphis. Mike Wynn is a formerly highly-touted recruit who does kickoffs. Joey Biasatti was one of the best punters in the nation last year. He graduated, but junior John Braziel has starting experience.
Coaches: Gary Patterson, Franchione's former defensive coordinator at TCU, has done a tremendous job in his 2 seasons at TCU and his name will start to come up with big-time coaching vacancies if he puts together one more good season. TCU's run defense has been unstoppable since his tenure. Patterson and OC Mike Schultz can put together frustrating game plans for both fans and bettors. They are usually content to beat a team 17-10 in a field position battle instead of going for any big plays on offense. 3rd and 12 passes in the flat and fullback runs on 2nd and 15 are not uncommon. These conservative gameplans nearly came back to bite TCU in games against North Texas and Tulane in the 4th quarter. However, against teams that were the creme-de-la-creme of C-USA like USM and Louisville, Patterson opened up the offense which led to 2 combined wins by 82-38.
FROM A BETTOR'S PERSPECTIVE: Given the inconsistency of gameplans by Patterson and Schultz, TCU is not a team you want to be putting big $$$ on. I would heavily recommend betting on Tulane ATS in TCU's Monday night opener Sept. 1st at New Orleans. TCU, even with their strong defense last year, has problems with teams that love to sling the ball. (They were 1-4 ATS last year against teams with what I would call gun-slinger QBS Troth, Losman, Wimprine, Guidugli, and Ragone) With a green secondary and it being the opening game, TCU will have a difficult time to even beat Tulane much less cover. With TCU's weak schedule, they should easily get 9-10 wins. If a non-BCS team is to go undefeated, here's the one that will do it.
TEXAS CHRISTIAN UNIVERSITY
I'm new to the forum but can help y'all out with my TCU preview, being an ex-student. Let's get some more input from other fans out there from other teams. This is a great thread idea by escrow, and I know a lot of y'all from over the country could help us out!!!
TEXAS CHRISTIAN UNIV.
QB: Tye Gunn is a sophomore QB who will attempt to recover from a brutal ACL injury last October from the nationally televised trouncing against Southern Miss. All indications are he is healthy, and TCU plays on grass which will be better for his knee recovery. Last year, Gunn replaced ineffective Sean Stilley who suffered an injury. When Stilley recovered, Gunn did not lose his job and led TCU's once-stagnant offense to an average of 38 points a game. The backup situation is very shaky if Gunn's knee gives him problems. Junior Brandon Hassell, once heavily recruited, still has yet to grasp TCU's offense. The x-factor may be true freshman dual-threat QB James Battle, who TCU signed in a coup over other schools like Tennessee.
RB: This might be one of the top RB corps in the NCAA this year (don't laugh!!). Lonta Hobbs ran for 1029 yards and 12 touchdowns in just 8 games. He averaged 6.6 ypc. The coaching staff had no intentions of playing him in 2002 until the team put up pitiful performances in the first four games on the ground. Hobbs is a home run threat and can also carry the ball 30-35 times a game if need be. After his first game he told a reporter that he thought college football was easier than high school. (Which may be true for him, he played for a moribund HS team and never rushed for 1,000 yds in a high school season... Still TCU got him over Oklahoma) Ricky Madison ran for over 700 yards last year. He has trouble as a feature back, but as the change-of-pace back with Hobbs, he can wear down opposing defenses. Corey Connally is a senior who has made quite a few starts in the last 2 years. He is not a breakaway threat. One player who might come out of nowhere is Robert Merrill, a redshirt freshman. He ran for nearly 3000 yards in his final high school season in Texas. Most prospect lists don't change once the high school season starts, so that's why Merrill has a low prospect ranking. Don't let it fool you. Players have remarked on the side that Merrill is the best RB on the team. He looked AWESOME in the spring game against TCU's phenomenal run-stuffing defense. Former USA Today All-American and Longhorn transfer Kenny Hayter will likely move to fullback.
WR: These guys are rarely used in offensive coordinator Mike Schultz's schemes. 2 WRs were draft picks in '02. Reggie Harrell is 6'3" and also a track star but has recurring hamstring injuries and doesn't have a good set of hands. While most mags have Kevin Brown returning for a 6th year of eligibility, don't count on it. Redshirt frosh Michael DePriest runs a 4.3 40 yd dash. The receiving corps is extremely weak and could hurt TCU against a run-stuffing defense like So. Miss. TE Cody McCarty might become a favorite target of Gunn's.
OL: Weightlifting coach Don Sommer turns average high school prospects into behemoths in the weightroom. All the starting linemen can max out at 500 lbs on the bench. The depth is a little thin with graduation, but new guys seem to step up every year. If the field is sloppy, TCU has a great advantage.
DL: Rated one of the best in the country by numerous mags, TCU's DL was #1 in the country giving up just 2.0 yards a carry. 7 of 8 from the 2-deep are back.
LB: With Butkus finalist LaMarcus McDonald's questionable decision to leave for the NFL (he wasn't drafted) this corps will be down a few notches. TCU runs a 4-2-5 defense. Still, the linebacking group is thin. Josh Goolsby and Martin Patterson are the projected starters.
DB: TCU's three best DBs graduated, leaving some large holes in the secondary. Marvin Godbolt is a safety who is a run-stopping terror in addition to being great in coverage. He beat the daylights out of Eric Crouch on blitzes in his first game as a freshman in Lincoln. It was Crouch's worst game of his Heisman season. Tyrone Sanders is a returning starter, but he will need to improve on single coverage on deep balls. He got burned at least once a game by speedy receivers. The rest played little last year and will have to step up. Against throwing QBs (Wimprine, Guidugli, Ragone, Troth) TCU had problems in 2002, and it looks to be the same way this year.
ST: Nick Browne, a walk-on from the soccer team, was a finalist for the Lou Groza Award. Except in clutch situations, he was automatic in '02. He missed a potential game-tying field goal against East Carolina, a field goal in the bowl game against Memphis. Mike Wynn is a formerly highly-touted recruit who does kickoffs. Joey Biasatti was one of the best punters in the nation last year. He graduated, but junior John Braziel has starting experience.
Coaches: Gary Patterson, Franchione's former defensive coordinator at TCU, has done a tremendous job in his 2 seasons at TCU and his name will start to come up with big-time coaching vacancies if he puts together one more good season. TCU's run defense has been unstoppable since his tenure. Patterson and OC Mike Schultz can put together frustrating game plans for both fans and bettors. They are usually content to beat a team 17-10 in a field position battle instead of going for any big plays on offense. 3rd and 12 passes in the flat and fullback runs on 2nd and 15 are not uncommon. These conservative gameplans nearly came back to bite TCU in games against North Texas and Tulane in the 4th quarter. However, against teams that were the creme-de-la-creme of C-USA like USM and Louisville, Patterson opened up the offense which led to 2 combined wins by 82-38.
FROM A BETTOR'S PERSPECTIVE: Given the inconsistency of gameplans by Patterson and Schultz, TCU is not a team you want to be putting big $$$ on. I would heavily recommend betting on Tulane ATS in TCU's Monday night opener Sept. 1st at New Orleans. TCU, even with their strong defense last year, has problems with teams that love to sling the ball. (They were 1-4 ATS last year against teams with what I would call gun-slinger QBS Troth, Losman, Wimprine, Guidugli, and Ragone) With a green secondary and it being the opening game, TCU will have a difficult time to even beat Tulane much less cover. With TCU's weak schedule, they should easily get 9-10 wins. If a non-BCS team is to go undefeated, here's the one that will do it.
Interesting read texan. Thanks for the input. I had TCU pegged as one of my darkhorse teams, largely due to the emergence of Hobbs, their swarming defense, and weak schedule. Really appreciate the insight in regard to the Tulane game.
a little addition --
a little addition --
While fans realize that the talent level at Nebraska is not close to what it once was, it seems that new D Coordinator Bo Pelini has reinstilled the great sense of pride that once lingered in Lincoln. There has been much talk of the no-nonsense attitude and disciplinarian approach that Pelini has pushed upon the players. Realistically, will they be able to match up with a lot of people athletically? No. But they will play much harder as a unit than we saw last year.
a little addition --
While fans realize that the talent level at Nebraska is not close to what it once was, it seems that new D Coordinator Bo Pelini has reinstilled the great sense of pride that once lingered in Lincoln. There has been much talk of the no-nonsense attitude and disciplinarian approach that Pelini has pushed upon the players. Realistically, will they be able to match up with a lot of people athletically? No. But they will play much harder as a unit than we saw last year.
That is for sure. Crunk was quoted as saying "I would run through a brick wall on fire for this guy". The defense has taken to this guy and will definitely reflect his personality. He has simplified a lot of the schemes, and will also get guys lined up correctly. The defense will be this team's strength. I think they will be much better, but not necessarily in the WL column.
hey escrow--
hey escrow--
what do you think about Barney Cotton??I grew up going to his team's games in Hastings, NE at Hastings College. It will be interesting to see what kind of attack he plans to employ coming from such a pass happy offense at NMSU.
hey escrow--
what do you think about Barney Cotton??I grew up going to his team's games in Hastings, NE at Hastings College. It will be interesting to see what kind of attack he plans to employ coming from such a pass happy offense at NMSU.
WCB
WCB
I am pretty excited about him. While he won't make us totally pass happy, I have heard that we will be about a 65/35 balance of run pass. He has really simplified our schemes and feels that Lord will have a real good year. His goal is a 55-60% completion rate for our offense to be at max efficiency. The guys are taking to him as well. Our biggest worry is that Frank will give him FULL AND TOTAL CONTROL over the offense, and not the damn clusterphuck of play calling that has occured over the last 3 years.
GBR
WCB
I am pretty excited about him. While he won't make us totally pass happy, I have heard that we will be about a 65/35 balance of run pass. He has really simplified our schemes and feels that Lord will have a real good year. His goal is a 55-60% completion rate for our offense to be at max efficiency. The guys are taking to him as well. Our biggest worry is that Frank will give him FULL AND TOTAL CONTROL over the offense, and not the damn clusterphuck of play calling that has occured over the last 3 years.
GBR
UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
USC
Coaching: This is clearly why USC is back in the national rankings. I would not trade Pete Carroll for any other head coach. He and Stoops are the 2 best defensive minded head coaches in college football. USC had #1 recruiting class last year as well so expect a lot of stud freshman to get playing time or provide solid depth. Can't say enough of what he has done to USC in just 2 seasons. I think one of the major reasons for the success of Pete Carroll is he has surrounded himself with top notch assistant coaches. Norm Chow is one if not the best OC in college football and Pete carroll is one of the top notch DC in college football. (he is in charge of defense) USC also has one of the best S&C coaches in football which showed last year when USC dominated the 2nd half in many of the games. USC is a great 2nd half team.
OFFENSE: USC should have a drop off in offensive production this year because we have nobody to replace Carson Palmer. Although USC upgraded at every position on offense except QB, so there is a chance that USC could be productive on offense.
USC is balanced team and has a ton of talent on offense, i think USC offense should score 20-30pts a game.
DEFENSE: AWESOME, this group should shut down every offense we face this year. USC had dominating defense last year (top 10) and they only lost 1 crucial starter and 3 good starters. Teams will have a hard time scoring over 20pts against this defense. Only qustion mark will be the time of possesion. IF USC offense has many 3 and outs, could and prob. will hurt the USC defense although we have depth this year which we didn't have last year.
Short opinions on each set of positions.
QB: BIG question mark, but USC just needs a QB to be efficient. Basically USC does not need a QB to win games, just a QB who will not lose games. No turnovers and just get the ball to the surrounding talent.
RB: Lost 3 senior RB but i am very optimistic because the guys we have now are all more talented. Dennis is SOPH. and then 3 STUD freshman we recrruited this year including the #1 or #2 RB in the nation last year in high school Reggie Bush and the other 2 guys were top 10 in the nation as well. SCARY but experience might be an issue.
OL: Were good last year and we lost only 1 starter. 3 starting senors and should be good to great as a unit this year. CFN News rated USC OL #1 in nation, but i think that might be too high. I rate maybe top 10. Depth might be an issue because most of the backups are studs but all are freshman or redshirt freshman. As long as Rogers and Justice are healthy, OL will be fine.
WR: Should be awesome this year, just need a QB to get them the ball. Mike Williams is a top 3 WR in nation this year and he is only a soph. Our #2 WR Colbert is a great WR as well and USC prob. has one of the best tandoms in the nation. USC also recruited the #1 WR in nation last year (Lewis) and the #3 WR in the nation as well (Smith). Also the existing guys on team are not too shabby either as backups.
DL: The best unit on the team, and very exciting to watch. The starting 4 are prob. the best in the nation. CFN News ranked the USC DL #1 in nation and i agree. Also, the backups on the DL are very talented as well and they would prob. be starting on many teams in the nation. This unit is very scary and will be scary for many years to come. The depth is unreal. We go 3 deep with all studs.
LB: This is a question mark on the defense. Our outside LB are very good especially Matt Grootegood. Awesome player and he is undersized. The big question mark is the MLB. USC does not have a big imposing MLB but it should not be a weakness either. Just nothing special at MLB. DEPTH is major concern of the LB corps especially with the recent drowing of a major LB Recruit Drean Rucker. God rest his soul.
DB: A small question mark but actually could be dominating. One DB is pretty much a shut down corner with size. USC has 2 seniors and 1 junior to battle out the other side. ALl very talented but 2 missed the whole season last year and the other is from JC and only has 1 year to play. BUT if he went to NFL last year he was projected to be 4th round pick. So he has good chance to be the other shut down corner. But remember, with the DL USC has they will not have to cover very long. I think this unit will be strong. Safety and Strong safety should be strong as well with SUPER STUD FROSH DARNELL BING. REMEMBER THIS NAME, he will be better than Troy Polomolou and he won the starting spot the first day of camp. 6.2 220, runs 4.4. PHYSICAL SPECIMEN.
Special teams was horrible last year but this year we will improve dramatically. Punting will be top 10 in nation, but field goal kicking is huge question mark. My guess we will be average at field goal kicking. Last year defenses started out on 40 yard line and the USC defense still shut teams down. If USC can make teams start on 20 very few teams can drive 80 yards on this defense. I think USC had lack of quality bodies on ST so expect improvement this year with the stud recruiting class Carroll brought in.
Overall, i think "if" USC can beat Auburn in the HUGE OPENING GAME, we will def. make a NC run. Pete Carroll's moto is the best defense and best offense we will face is in practice. It might not be that way exactly right now, but i am confident it will be shortly. Last year Pete Carroll could not scrimmage much in practice because of depth issues. Now he is not fearful about that and USC ran very tough practices in the spring and will in the August.
My only question mark with this team is QB but unfortunately that is huge question mark. All QB's are talented but none are super talented like Palmer last year. If i am betting man i think USC loses 2-3 games this year but has the talent and coaching staff to go all the way if they can pull out a tough win over Auburn.
USC
Coaching: This is clearly why USC is back in the national rankings. I would not trade Pete Carroll for any other head coach. He and Stoops are the 2 best defensive minded head coaches in college football. USC had #1 recruiting class last year as well so expect a lot of stud freshman to get playing time or provide solid depth. Can't say enough of what he has done to USC in just 2 seasons. I think one of the major reasons for the success of Pete Carroll is he has surrounded himself with top notch assistant coaches. Norm Chow is one if not the best OC in college football and Pete carroll is one of the top notch DC in college football. (he is in charge of defense) USC also has one of the best S&C coaches in football which showed last year when USC dominated the 2nd half in many of the games. USC is a great 2nd half team.
OFFENSE: USC should have a drop off in offensive production this year because we have nobody to replace Carson Palmer. Although USC upgraded at every position on offense except QB, so there is a chance that USC could be productive on offense.
USC is balanced team and has a ton of talent on offense, i think USC offense should score 20-30pts a game.
DEFENSE: AWESOME, this group should shut down every offense we face this year. USC had dominating defense last year (top 10) and they only lost 1 crucial starter and 3 good starters. Teams will have a hard time scoring over 20pts against this defense. Only qustion mark will be the time of possesion. IF USC offense has many 3 and outs, could and prob. will hurt the USC defense although we have depth this year which we didn't have last year.
Short opinions on each set of positions.
QB: BIG question mark, but USC just needs a QB to be efficient. Basically USC does not need a QB to win games, just a QB who will not lose games. No turnovers and just get the ball to the surrounding talent.
RB: Lost 3 senior RB but i am very optimistic because the guys we have now are all more talented. Dennis is SOPH. and then 3 STUD freshman we recrruited this year including the #1 or #2 RB in the nation last year in high school Reggie Bush and the other 2 guys were top 10 in the nation as well. SCARY but experience might be an issue.
OL: Were good last year and we lost only 1 starter. 3 starting senors and should be good to great as a unit this year. CFN News rated USC OL #1 in nation, but i think that might be too high. I rate maybe top 10. Depth might be an issue because most of the backups are studs but all are freshman or redshirt freshman. As long as Rogers and Justice are healthy, OL will be fine.
WR: Should be awesome this year, just need a QB to get them the ball. Mike Williams is a top 3 WR in nation this year and he is only a soph. Our #2 WR Colbert is a great WR as well and USC prob. has one of the best tandoms in the nation. USC also recruited the #1 WR in nation last year (Lewis) and the #3 WR in the nation as well (Smith). Also the existing guys on team are not too shabby either as backups.
DL: The best unit on the team, and very exciting to watch. The starting 4 are prob. the best in the nation. CFN News ranked the USC DL #1 in nation and i agree. Also, the backups on the DL are very talented as well and they would prob. be starting on many teams in the nation. This unit is very scary and will be scary for many years to come. The depth is unreal. We go 3 deep with all studs.
LB: This is a question mark on the defense. Our outside LB are very good especially Matt Grootegood. Awesome player and he is undersized. The big question mark is the MLB. USC does not have a big imposing MLB but it should not be a weakness either. Just nothing special at MLB. DEPTH is major concern of the LB corps especially with the recent drowing of a major LB Recruit Drean Rucker. God rest his soul.
DB: A small question mark but actually could be dominating. One DB is pretty much a shut down corner with size. USC has 2 seniors and 1 junior to battle out the other side. ALl very talented but 2 missed the whole season last year and the other is from JC and only has 1 year to play. BUT if he went to NFL last year he was projected to be 4th round pick. So he has good chance to be the other shut down corner. But remember, with the DL USC has they will not have to cover very long. I think this unit will be strong. Safety and Strong safety should be strong as well with SUPER STUD FROSH DARNELL BING. REMEMBER THIS NAME, he will be better than Troy Polomolou and he won the starting spot the first day of camp. 6.2 220, runs 4.4. PHYSICAL SPECIMEN.
Special teams was horrible last year but this year we will improve dramatically. Punting will be top 10 in nation, but field goal kicking is huge question mark. My guess we will be average at field goal kicking. Last year defenses started out on 40 yard line and the USC defense still shut teams down. If USC can make teams start on 20 very few teams can drive 80 yards on this defense. I think USC had lack of quality bodies on ST so expect improvement this year with the stud recruiting class Carroll brought in.
Overall, i think "if" USC can beat Auburn in the HUGE OPENING GAME, we will def. make a NC run. Pete Carroll's moto is the best defense and best offense we will face is in practice. It might not be that way exactly right now, but i am confident it will be shortly. Last year Pete Carroll could not scrimmage much in practice because of depth issues. Now he is not fearful about that and USC ran very tough practices in the spring and will in the August.
My only question mark with this team is QB but unfortunately that is huge question mark. All QB's are talented but none are super talented like Palmer last year. If i am betting man i think USC loses 2-3 games this year but has the talent and coaching staff to go all the way if they can pull out a tough win over Auburn.
i'm gonna be using my anti consensus angle and track it like i do in baseball.
i'm gonna post a thread on it now.
