This week most teams will be starting their inter-conference play at we will start our preview in the great state of California in the beautiful city of Palo Alto where the Stanford Cardinal will be welcome the number two team in the country in the Trojans of USC. On paper USC should be able to absolutely roll over the Cardinal, but as history shows us that is not always the case. USC better be on upset alert this weekend and better be at the top of their game. Stanford has beaten the Trojans the last four years and that includes in 2007 when Stanford was a 42 point underdog. Matt Barkley always brings his A game so I do not think that will be an issue I just hope Lane Kiffen utilizes Robert Woods and Marqise Lee, as im sure he will, at the appropriate time. When Stanford throws out their two deep safeties it will be time to call on Silas Redd.

It is time once again for the city of East Lansing to welcome the Irish of South Bend. This game usually goes one way one year and the other way the next. Lately, Michigan State had had the upper hand, but overall Notre Dame still leads the series 46-28-1. The Spartans have not allowed an offensive touchdown this season and are looking for their first 3-0 start for the first time in 10 years. Notre Dame Sophomore quarterback Everett Golson is averaging nearly 300 passing yards a game and he has been highly talked about by ESPN analysts Mel Kipper Jr. and Todd McShay. The Irish are a big underdog, mainly because they have such a young team, but I believe if they can start off getting on top early we may see another upset of a Big 10 school.

Over the past several years, other than the Urban Meyer and Lane Kiffen controversy, the Florida-Tennessee rivalry has not been that high profile of a game. This year both teams are ranked in the top 25 and are both labeled underdogs in the SEC. In the last eight years Florida has had the upper hand and it has always seemed that whenever the Volunteers were in the top 25 the Gators destroyed them and kicked them back out. Tennessee quarterback Tyler Bray threw for 310 yards and four touchdowns last week against Georgia State and in week one he threw for over 200 yards and two more scores. In every average category this year so far Tennessee outplays Florida including rushing yards, passing yards, and points scored. This game should be close, but it will depend on which “average” defense shows up.

College Gameday will be in Knoxville, Tennessee.

Week 3 Predictions:

Alabama 52-25 Arkansas

USC 35-32 Stanford

Notre Dame 17-25 Michigan State

California 23-24 Ohio State

Florida 32-42 Tennessee

BYU 21-17 Utah

Week 6 of the college football season is in the books, and once again, CSF brings you a complete recap of the week that was.  Check out our breakdown of five key bits of info you can’t do without as we continue through the 2011 college football season.

No Florida Schools in the Top 25: Florida State was supposed to be the bell cow of the ACC and the state of Florida in 2011, but after suffering their third straight loss to Wake Forest last weekend, the ‘Noles are out of the top 25.  Much hype was surrounding the Florida Gators, but back to back games against Alabama and LSU would be enough to drop anyone.  The Gators were hammered 41-11 by LSU, and the second-straight loss was too much to keep them in the rankings as well.  Miami, USF and UCF have all been mentioned in the top 25 at different points this season, but all have lost critical games this season, and all are on the outside of the polls looking in.

Red River Blowout: Many (including myself) thought Texas was way overrated coming into this game–the Longhorns were ranked as the #11 team in the nation, but very few predicted the kind of beat down the Sooners would deliver last weekend.  The OU defense outscored Texas in this one, accounting for three touchdowns.  The fast-paced OU offense did their damage as well, on their way to a 55-17 blowout victory for Oklahoma.

Michigan off to the quietest 6-0 start in history: The dominance of Wisconsin and the implosion of Ohio State have been the main topics of discussion this season in the Big Ten.  That has overshadowed a fantastic start by first year head coach Brady Hoke’s perfect start in 2011.  Hoke has done a lot with very little, especially on the defensive side of the ball, but the Wolverines aren’t getting much love.  A win at rival Michigan State this weekend would not only make the Wolverines bowl eligible in mid-October, it would also serve as notice to the college football world that, while Michigan is still not a top 10 team, Hoke has cleaned up Rich Rod’s mess much faster than anyone could have imagined.

Mark Richt gets 100th win: After starting the 2011 season with a loss against Boise State and a heart-breaker at home to South Carolina in week 2, the Bulldogs won their third straight game last weekend at Tennessee.  The win was head coach Mark Richt’s 100th as a head coach in Athens.  Richt, who came into this season on the hot seat, has Georgia playing better than any team in the SEC East.  A win against rival Florida on October 29th could buy him an extra year and vault the Dawgs into an SEC Championship Game.

In a stunning revelation, Ohio State is the “poster child” of compliance:  I was under the impression that massive suspensions of key players, the untimely departure of a hall of fame coach amid controversy, inappropriate dealings with boosters and free tattoos and gifts from a known Columbus drug dealer were signs that an athletic program wasn’t keeping very good tabs on its student-athletes.  Fortunately, for people like me, who were completely misunderstanding the situation at OSU, their president Gordon Gee took the liberty of clearing up that slight misconception.  Gee informed the Ohio State faculty last week that OSU is the “poster child” of compliance.  In the wake of that announcement, Charlie Sheen is expected to announce that he is the poster child of child care, Lindsay Lohan is expected to announce that she is the poster child of sobriety, and Carrot Top is expected to claim he is the poster child of comedy.

Do unto others what you would have them done to you–the Golden Rule.  It has applied and held true since the beginning of time, and continues to be a part of every day life to this day.  Just ask former Tennessee basketball coach Bruce Pearl.

Pearl was fired this week, amid an NCAA investigation that he lied and misled the NCAA.  Pearl admitted to lying to the NCAA and has been very up front with the media and fans that he was wrong and any punishment he incurs is due to his mistakes.

If you feel like Pearl got a bad wrap for this recent incident that ultimately cost him his job, think again.  While I have been (and will continue to be) critical of the NCAA and some of their rules and decisions, it could be argued that Pearl got a nice dose of karma over the last year.

To most basketball fans, Pearl is known for the charismatic coach that has a great relationship with the media and has embraced the success of legendary women’s coach Pat Summitt, even showing up at one game in body paint to cheer with the students for the Lady Vols.

A closer look at Pearl’s past, however, shows a completed different side of the former head coach.  Back in 1989, Pearl was an assistant coach at Iowa.  Pearl, known for being a great recruiter, was involved in the recruitment of blue chip recruit Deon Thomas, who was Mr. Basketball in the state of Illinois.

When Pearl lost the prized recruit to rival Illinois, without Thomas’ permission or knowledge, Pearl recorded a phone conversation with Thomas that bordered on entrapment.  In the conversation, Pearl coaxed the star recruit into allegedly admitting that he was offered a Chevy Blazer if he signed to play for the Illini. 

Pearl promptly submitted the recorded conversation, along with a memo to the NCAA.  Thomas would later tell investigators that he said the things he said to get Pearl off the phone with him, and after going as far as taking a polygraph, it was determined that Thomas was telling the truth, when he told investigators that he was not offered the vehicle.

Still, the damage was done.  When the NCAA investigates nearly any major athletic program, they’re going to find something.  I mean, let’s face it–any team that is competitive at the major revenue-producing sports of football and basketball is, at the very least, pushing the envelope and testing the grey areas of the NCAA rules.  Illinois was no different.  Although the investigation into Illinois found no violations with this particular issue with Thomas, it uncovered other minor violations, and a major violation in 1990.

Fast forward twenty years.  In case you haven’t been following Pearl’s struggle with the NCAA for the last several months, we will fill you in on why he was questioned by the NCAA in the first place.  Recruiting violations.  

Do unto others….well, you know the rest, right?

For the elite high school quarterbacks in the country, the opportunity to play quarterback at one of the bigtime college football programs is a dream come true.  One major factor in making the final decision on which program gets the signature on the letter of intent is the degree to which that individual player will be prepared for the next level (the NFL).

The high-powered programs like Florida, Oklahoma, Miami and USC are just a few of the major BSC schools that elite high school quarterbacks consider, and why not?  These teams are known for their juggernaut offenses, and they are consistently in the hunt for a national championship.  College FootBlog takes a deeper look into the progress of the top performing quarterbacks from the NFL and where those QBs played their college ball.

Drew Brees has continued to relish the underdog role in the NFL, much like he did when he played QB at Purdue (google images)

If you are a coach or a parent of an elite QB, the you may want to take a hard look at the numbers because you’ll probably be very surprised.  For a number of reasons, which we will cover later, the major programs typically do not groom their top-tier signal callers for the NFL.  Let’s take a look at the passer ratings from the last season.

Of the top ten quarterback ratings, only two, Peyton Manning (Tennessee) and Tom Brady (Michigan) went to perineal BCS power houses, and Manning was ranked sixth, with Brady at #9. 

Purdue’s Drew Brees was the Superbowl MVP and the top-rated QB in the NFL last year, with a QB Rating of 109.6.  Brett Favre was a close second and is a sure-fire, first ballot Hall of Famer, and he played at Southern Miss.  

Phillip Rivers was the 3rd-ranked QB last year and has been a dominant player since his arrival in 2004, but NC State is not exactly known as Quarterback-U.  Aaron Rodgers was #4 and played at Cal, which doesn’t have the glamor of USC, but he outperformed his former rivals from LA last season.  Matt Schaub was ranked seventh and hails from the University of Virginia. 

The other three QBs in the top ten really dispel the idea that you have to go to a bigtime program to prepare for the NFL.   Fifth-ranked Ben Roethlisberger went to Miami–no, not that ‘Miami’…Miami of Ohio.  Eighth-ranked Tony Romo and 10th-ranked Kurt Warner played Division IAA (or FCS for those who are up on the new abbreviations) at Eastern Illinois and Northern Iowa, respectively.

Now, let’s take a look at the lowest ranked QBs from last year’s NFL season.  Five of the worst eight QBs in the NFL last season were from major programs, including #32 (the worst) first-round bust JaMarcus Russell from LSU.  Former USC quarterbacks Matt Cassel and Mark Sanchez were numbers 25 and 28.

Former Notre Dame star Brady Quinn came in at #27 and rookie quarterback Matthew Stafford struggled in his first season out of the University of Georgia, ranking 29th.

When digging into the numbers it really should not come as a huge surprise.  Afterall, the quarterbacks at the major programs typically have a bigtime advantage with their receiving corps versus the opposing secondaries.  For example, in Stafford’s last season at Georgia, he had 6’2″ and 2nd round pick Mohamed Massaquoi and soon to be first rounder AJ Green, who is 6’4″ and could be the best wideout in the country this year.

Even in the SEC, which is widely known for being the best conference in college football, the dominant programs have bigger, faster and stronger WRs, creating bigger windows to throw into and much more room for error. 

In the NFL, it is typically the cornerbacks that are the fastest players on the field, and while they may be at a disadvantage in size, the talent pool is much smaller, and those large windows to complete passes are not only smaller, but they also close very quickly.  In the NFL, a ball delivered a split-second too early or too late is the difference between a completion and a pick-six for the defense.

The QBs at the lesser-known programs have to deal with a more balanced and level playing field and often do not have this colossal advantage with their receivers, forcing them to make better reads and to thread the needle, instead of throwing to an area.

In the end, there are a few low-ranked QBs that could easily turn things around.  After all, Mark Sanchez and Matthew Stafford were only rookies last season, but the trend is quite staggering when you take away all the glamor and simply look at production on the field.  For the time being (and seemingly for the immediate future), it is the underdogs that continue to lead the way.

In the last two weeks, College FootBlog has unveiled our Preseason Rankings for the ACC and the Big Ten.  This week, we take our shot at the SEC in another two-part breakdown.  We start with the SEC East and we will roll out our SEC West breakdown later in the week.  The SEC has long been known for being the best conference in college football, and this year should be no different.  Here is how we see the rankings going into the summer:

Florida QB John Brantley will put up big numbers this season, but he will need a physical back to join him in the backfield in the red zone (google images)

1.  Florida: The loss of Tebow will certainly hurt the Gators’ chances, but Florida fans will quickly realize that John Brantley is a much more polished passer than their former Heisman Trophy winner at QB.  Brantley has more arm strength and more accuracy, and with UF’s speed at wide receiver, he will put up big numbers this fall.  There are two unknowns for Florida going into the fall that have been strengths of the team the last three years–talent and experience on defense and short-yardage plays on offense.  The Gators lost some key players on defense, including DE Carlos Dunlap, LB Brandon Spikes and big-play CB Joe Haden.  Urban Meyer has recruited with the best of them, but replacing those three impact players will be extremely difficult.  The issue that could cost the Gators a game or two this season is that without Tebow, they have no proven short-yardage running back.  With the goal line defenses in the SEC, that will likely cost them dearly in 2010 unless they find someone by August.  If they solve that problem, they will again be the team to beat in their division.

2.  Georgia: The ‘Dawgs struggled with a conference record of 4-4 last season, but they have a lot of reasons for optimism in 2010.  Head coach Mark Richt will have a new defensive staff going into the fall, as the Bulldogs try to take a page out of Nick Saban’s book and institute the 3-4.  Even though it is an entirely different system, new D-coordinator Todd Grantham has some great players returning, headlined by NT DeAngelo Tyson.  After the spring workouts, Richt announced that Freshman QB Aaron Murray is first on the depth chart, but his inexperience should be offset by All-American WR candidate AJ Green and sophomore RB Washaun Ealey.  With the departure of Tebow from Florida, solid skill players on offense and a revamped defense, 2010 should be a year that UGA challenges Florida for a SEC Championship.

3.  South Carolina: Steve Spurrier’s “Fun & Gun” offense has never quite materialized since he took over in Columbia, and last season was an offensive season he would like to forget, and much of those issues were due to a very bad offensive line that surrendered more sacks than any team in the SEC and were also dead last in rushing in the conference.  Spurrier brought in Shawn Elliot from Appalachian State to coach the offensive line.  That should help an O-line that can’t get any worse.  The good news for the Gamecocks is that they have some very talented skill players on both sides of the ball.  Offensively, quarterback Stephen Garcia threw for over 2,800 yards and 17 TDs, despite the poor play on the line in front of him.  Look for those numbers to improve behind a better running game.  Defensively, South Carolina returns several players from a defense that finished 15th nationally in total defense.  That defense and an improved line will result in more respect in Columbia this season.

After just one season in Knoxville, Lane Kiffin departed for USC and left the Vols high and dry in the thick of the recruiting season (google images)

4.  Tennessee: The Vols lost several key players on defense, including NFL first rounder Eric Berry.  The lone bright spot on offense was running back Montario Hardesty, and he has left for the NFL.  Former five-star prospect Bryce Brown announced this past spring that he was leaving the program as well, leaving little in the cupboard for what was already an anemic offense. The key losses on both sides of the ball, in addition to all the coaching changing leave the Vols with an uphill battle this fall.  Now for the bad news.  New head coach Derek Dooley must clean up the mess that former coach Lane Kiffin left behind when he abruptly departed the Vols for USC, just weeks before National Signing Day, which put a major strain on recruiting. The Vols should still have the talent to compete in the SEC, but they are at least another year away from being a serious contender.

5.  Kentucky: Joker Phillips officially moves from assistant coach to running the show this fall, and he will have his hands full.  The Wildcats must replace four starters on the offensive line and several key players on defense, including linebackers Sam Maxwell and Micah Johnson.  Quarterback Matt Hartline returns this year from injury and should have the upper hand for the starting job, but Morgan Newton, who started seven games last season has a legitimate shot at taking the starting role away during two-a-days.  With all the losses on both sides of the ball, it could be a tough season in Lexington.

6.  Vanderbilt: If last year’s 2-10 season was any indication, it could be another long season for the Commodores this fall.  It’s not all doom and gloom, though.  Running back Warren Norman returns after being named last season’s SEC Freshman of the Year.  Also on offense, quarterback Jordan Rogers (brother of Green Bay Packers’ QB Aaron Rogers) comes to Vandy after leading his junior college team to a Juco National Championship last season.  Rogers is expected to battle Larry Smith for the starting job.  Regardless of who lines up under center, the Commodores must improve their offense, which finished 110th nationally last season,  if they want to have a shot at a .500 season.

Check College FootBlog later this week for our breakdown of the SEC West!

Garrett Graham, along with classmate O'Brien Schofield, was selected in the fourth round of the 2010 NFL Draft.

By: Brian Mosgaller

Five years ago, both Garrett Graham and O’Brien Schofield arrived on the UW-Madison campus with little fanfare. Graham, who played tight end, defensive end, punter and kicker at Memorial High in Brick, N.J., was ranked as one of the top 35 tight ends in the country by Rivals.com, and Schofield, out of North Chicago Community High, was listed among the country’s top 25 defensive ends.

Although it was feasible either or both could develop into something special, it would be a stretch to say it was expected.

In that first season, 2005, both Graham and Schofield were saddled with the redshirt distinction, charged with learning the system and developing physically.

The following year, neither saw the field nearly enough to resonate in the minds of fans, even dedicated Badger backers. Graham played in just three games, registering zero catches on the year and failing to letter. Similarly, Schofield found his way off the sideline on five occasions, but recorded donuts in every statistical category.

By 2007, their sophomore year of eligibility, Graham began showing flashes of potential. Cut in the mold of Owen Daniels’ (ironic considering that is who Graham will now be backing up), Graham nabbed 30 passes and four touchdowns for the cardinal-and-white, including career-highs in receptions and yards against Tennessee in the Outback Bowl.

Schofield, however, struggled to crack the rotation, playing in all 13 games, but finishing the year with just eight tackles and one forced fumble. Yet, as a sign of things to come, “OB,” as UW fans passionately refer to him, was given the starting nod in the bowl game versus UT.

From that point on, Graham and Schofield, by then seasoned upperclassmen, welcomed leadership roles both in the locker room and on the field. Playing in a tight end rotation with current-New York Giant Travis Beckum, Graham led the 2008 Badgers in catches, yards and touchdowns. Schofield, finally a full-time fixture on the Badger D-line, notched five sacks and eight-and-a-half tackles for loss, foreshadowing his disruptive capabilities.

Last year, Graham and Schofield capped their careers as they would’ve designed, with Graham racking up career-bests in catches, yards and touchdowns as a primary-target for first-year starting QB Scott Tolzien. While Graham was helping the passing game flourish in ways unimaginable prior to the season, Schofield carried a relatively unstable “D,” ending his senior season among the national leaders in sacks (12) and tackles for loss (24.5).

When their time in the Wisconsin capitol began, Graham and Schofield appeared to be quite different. Graham was a formidable, white tight end from the East Coast. Schofield was an undersized, black D-lineman from the Chicagoland-area, with notable cousins like Bobby Engram (the standout Penn State and NFL receiver) and Vonnie Holliday (the veteran NFL defensive end and one-time Green Bay Packer draft pick).

Yet, on Saturday, in the final session of the Mel Kiper Invitational, their journeys brought them to the same destination: the National Football League.

In fact, their journeys even brought the two incongruent individuals to the same geographic destination: the greater American southwest.

Just as he had reached the field first, Graham was the first off the board, taken with the 118th overall selection by the Houston Texans. Apropos, Schofield wasn’t far behind, nabbed with the 130th overall pick by the Arizona Cardinals.

It was a fitting result for two of the first Bret Bielema-era Badgers to reach the NFL. Even if, prima facie, Graham and Schofield seem like an odd couple, their paths have dovetailed since their inaugural seasons at UW. Both took time to develop, blossoming in their final two seasons to become legitimate professional prospects. Both are now a testament to the strength and conditioning program and coaching assets available at Wisconsin.

And both now get our congrats and best wishes as they embark on a new journey, albeit one with a cozier paycheck.