Technically last season the Cal Bears shared the Pac-10 title with USC, but it was USC that got all of the publicity and the spot in the BCS title game. This year it looks as if the Pac-10 will once again be a stepping stone for USC to play (and win) another BCS National Title. It will not be as easy as many might think, but USC definitely has to be the favorite in this conference.

USC returns their Heisman Candidate QB John David Booty, as well as most of their defense. Their biggest competition will come from the Cal Bears and the UCLA Bruins. The Bruins beat the Trojans last year, throwing them out of any chance to play in the BCS Title game. The Bruins bring back most of their starters on defense which held the Trojans to under 10 points in their matchup.

On the other hand the Cal Bears have most of their offensive firepower returning. At quarterback we have Nate Longshore, and he has one of the most exciting receivers in the country in DeSean Jackson to catch the ball. When Jackson isn’t catching passes, he will be returning kicks, another added dimension to his Heisman profile. At RB Justin Forsett will take over for the departed Marshawn Lynch. The Bears will score points, but can they out score every team with a less than stellar defensive unit.

The rest of the conference has potential. Oregon has a chance to be good but QB Dennis Dixon must be consistent and RB Jonathan Stewart has to stay healthy. I think Arizona has the potential to be a sleeper team which could upset one of the big boys with all of the defensive talent on the Wildcats’ team.

1. USC 9-0 (12-0)
2. UCLA 7-2 (9-3)
3. California 7-2 (9-3)
4. Oregon 6-3 (8-4)
5. Arizona State 4-5 (6-6)
6. Arizona 4-5 (6-6)
7. Oregon State 4-5 (6-6)
8. Washington State 2-7 (4-8)
9. Washington 2-7 (3-9)
10. Stanford 0-9 (1-11)

The 3rd season of In The Bleachers Podcast kicks off with Brian and Charlie discussing and debating which coaching changes were good and which teams took a step back in the hiring process. As the days pass before the season there will be more podcasts coming out predicting the upcoming season. But for now check out this podcast by clicking on this In The Bleachers Podcast link.

Remember, if you want the podcast you must subscribe to the Feedbuner but if you want to subscribe to the blog please use the RSS feed. This is for iTunes to be able to archive the shows. Enjoy this week’s episode of In The Bleachers and if you have any questions or comments to the show please email them to inthebleachers AT gmail DOT com.

During the 2006 season, the ACC was widely considered the worst of the BCS conferences and rightfully so with Wake Forest winning the conference title and beating Georgia Tech in probably the least exciting conference title game I’ve ever seen. This year might not be much better, but there is one glimmer of hope, Virginia Tech. The Hokies are a legitimate National Title contender, and their biggest game of the year could come in week 2 when they travel to play LSU.

The ACC has to hope for Florida State and Miami to come back to play at the level that we were use to in the 90s and early 2000s. They will not be contending for any titles this year, but both teams will be on the upswing from a down 2006 campaign. Wake Forest has most of its starters returning, but I don’t see them having the magical season they did last year. The Demon Deacons will be bowl bound, but not BCS Bowl bound.

Boston College is another interesting team. They lost their coach to another ACC school, but they will not miss a beat with Matt Ryan at quarterback. Georgia Tech will miss Calvin Johnson, but will not miss Reggie Ball as Taylor Bennett will start for the Yellow Jackets.

Atlantic Division
1. Boston College 6-2 (10-2)
2. Florida State 5-3 (8-4)
3. Wake Forest 5-3 (8-4)
4. Clemson 4-4 (7-5)
5. Maryland 3-5 (5-7)
6. NC State 1-7 (3-9)

Coastal Division
1. Virginia Tech 8-0 (11-1)
2. Miami Fla 6-2 (8-4)
3. Georgia Tech 6-2 (8-4)
4. Virginia 2-6 (6-6)
5. North Carolina 1-7 (3-9)
6. Duke 0-8 (1-11)

ACC Championship Game
Virginia Tech defeats Boston College

Rank
1 Grand Valley State (25)
2 Northwest Missouri State (2)
3 North Dakota (1)
4 North Alabama
5 Chadron State
6 Valdosta State
7 Pittsburg State
8 Shepherd
9 Bloomsburg
10 South Dakota
11 Abilene Christian
12 Delta State
13 Nebraska-Omaha
14 Northwood
15 Carson-Newman
16 Newberry
17 West Chester
18 Southeastern Oklahoma
19 Bemidji State
20 Albany State
21 Elizabeth City State
22 California (Pa.)
23 Midwestern State
24 West Texas A&M
25 Washburn 86

OTHERS RECEIVING VOTES: Saginaw Valley St. (Mich.), 79; Tiffin (Ohio), 70; Missouri Western St., 59; Southern Connecticut St., 53; Indiana (Pa.), 36; Tuskegee (Ala.), 36; Southwestern Oklahoma St., 26; Winona St. (Minn.), 26; St. Augustine’s (N.C.), 25; Tarleton St. (Texas), 22; Humboldt St. (Calif.), 20; Nebraska-Kearney, 12; C.W. Post (N.Y.), 9; Catawba (N.C.), 9; Fayetteville St. (N.C.), 9; Central Washington, 8; Ferris St. (Mich.), 7; Wingate (N.C.), 7; Arkansas Tech, 5; Bowie St. (Md.), 5; Mary (N.D.), 5; Henderson St. (Ark.), 4; North Greenville (S.C.), 3; Western Washington, 3; Kentucky St., 2; Minnesota-Duluth, 2; Lane (Tenn.), 1; Merrimack (Mass.), 1; Texas A&M-Kingsville, 1.

Coaches Poll

1 Appalachian State (27)
2 Montana
3 UMass (1)
4 North Dakota State
5 UNH
6 Youngstown State
7 James Madison
8 Illinois State
9 UNI
10 Furman
11 Southern Illinois
12 McNeese State
13 Portland State
14 Cal Poly
15 Wofford
16 Hampton
17 Eastern Illinois
18 Tennessee-Martin
19 South Dakota State
20 Coastal Carolina
21 Delaware
22 Morehead State
23 Sam Houston
24 Yale
25 Princeton

Sports Network’s FCS Football Rankings

Rank
1 Appalachian State (67)
2 Montana (3)
3 UMass
4 North Dakota State
5 Youngstown State
6 UNH (1)
7 Illinois State
8 James Madison
9 UNI
10 McNeese State
11 Furman
12 Southern Illinois
13 Portland State
14 Wofford
15 Cal Poly
16 Hampton
17 Eastern Illinois
18 Sam Houston
19 Delaware
20 South Dakota State
21 Montana State
22 Tennessee-Martin
23 Coastal Carolina
24 Yale
25 South Carolina State

OTHERS RECEIVING VOTES: Princeton 130, Towson 111, San Diego 95, Central Arkansas 94, Lafayette 90, Stephen F. Austin 80, Lehigh 77, Georgia Southern 59, Northern Arizona 58, UC Davis 55, Alabama A&M 54, Liberty 45, Delaware State.

It is my understanding that the Big 12 has some quality teams, but I don’t think any of those teams are National Champion quality teams. Right now I would have to say that Texas, Oklahoma, and Nebraska have a good shot at winning the BCS slot for the Big 12. Missouri also has a shot, but I still think the jury is out on their QB Chase Daniels. The Red River Shootout will end up being once again the Big 12 South Championship game. While the game between Nebraska and Missouri will decide the North.

Texas A&M and Oklahoma State could be spoilers because both have talent on both sides of the ball and could throw a wrench into Texas and Oklahoma’s plans for the BCS. As far as Out of Conference games go; USC comes to Lincoln in September and that could be the best chance of any team knocking the Trojans’ off from their undefeated season.

Big 12 North
1. Nebraska 7-1 (10-2)
2. Missouri 5-3 (8-4)
3. Kansas State 4-4 (6-6)
4. Colorado 3-5 (4-8)
5. Kansas 1-7 (4-8)
6. Iowa State 0-8 (2-10)

Big 12 South
1. Texas 7-1 (11-1)
2. Oklahoma 7-1 (11-1)
3. Oklahoma State 5-3 (8-4)
4. Texas A&M 5-3 (8-4)
5. Texas Tech 3-5 (6-6)
6. Baylor 1-7 (4-8)

Big 12 Championship Game
Nebraska over Texas revenging their regular season loss to the Longhorns

In 2007 the Big East should again be dominated by West Virginia and Louisville, with the rest of the conference looking up at those two powerhouses. Rutgers and South Florida could play a factor in who wins the Big East, but I do not see it being either of them. Like last year West Virginia could slip up against the Bulls or Rutgers could pull another upset of Louisville, but when the dust settles it will be either the Cardinals or Mountaineers at the top. As it looks right now it isn’t far fetched to say that the Big East could have two teams in BCS Bowl games. Here are my predictions for the end result of the Big East for the 2007 season in order of finish with the overall record in parentheses.

1. Louisville 7-0 (11-1)
2. West Virginia 6-1 (11-1)
3. South Florida 5-2 (9-3)
4. Rutgers 4-3 (8-4)
5. Pittsburgh 3-4 (6-6)
6. Cincinnati 1-6 (4-8)
7. Connecticut 1-6 (4-8)
8. Syracuse 1-6 (3-9)

As you can see I am picking Louisville to beat West Virginia, but really it is a toss-up game right now. However, I do not think Louisville will go the entire season without a loss. They have a tough game against Kentucky, in Lexington, that could slip them up. I believe Rutgers will see a little set back from last year’s great season and the Bulls are an up and coming team with a lot of talent. Pittsburgh has a shot against USF or Rutgers to pull out a win and that would go a long way since they have not been to a bowl game in 2 seasons.

So there you have it, my preseason predictions for the Big East. I will do this for the rest of the BCS conferences before the season starts. Also, we did not forget about podcasting. The season preview shows will be coming out real soon, so stay tuned!

For those Cane fans that remember all the great games in the Orange Bowl such as Wide Right, Wide Left, and so on, this will be your last year to see your Miami Hurricanes in the Orange Bowl. Today ‘Da U’ has finalized a deal that will have the Canes playing in Dolphins Stadium starting in the 2008 season. The Hurricanes agreed to a 25-year lease with Dolphin Stadium. A lot of Cane fans are sad to see the team move, but they have to be glad they won’t have to go to that dump of a stadium called the Orange Bowl. They will be able to wow recruits by showing them Dolphins Stadium which has undergone $200 million in upgrades in the past few years.

Penn State has been in the police blotter laterly, but yesterday the Lions received some good news when Jr safety Anthony Scirrotto had 5 of the 7 charges against him dropped. Scirrotto was involved in an off campus fight in April that landed a lot of players in hot water. More good news from Happy Valley sees Sophomore TE Andrew Quarless back with the team. Quarless along with fellow sophomore Willie Harriott were picked up for underage drinking late last week. Rumors were floating around that both players were kicked off the team. Coach Paterno left it up to the team to decide their fate, and the team voted to allow both player back on the team. No word on the punishment that the two will receive.

Rank Team ‘06 record Points ‘06 rank
1. Southern Cal (62) 11-2 1,622 4
2. LSU (2) 11-2 1,511 3
3. West Virginia (1) 11-2 1,396 10
4. Texas 10-3 1,375 13
5. Michigan 11-2 1,371 8
6. Florida 13-1 1,276 1
7. Wisconsin 12-1 1,192 7
8. Oklahoma 11-3 1,166 11
9. Virginia Tech 10-3 1,148 19
10. Louisville 12-1 1,031 6
11. Ohio St. 12-1 876 2
12. California 10-3 790 14
13. Georgia 9-4 782 23
14. UCLA 7-6 605 —
15. Tennessee 9-4 571 25
16. Rutgers 11-2 560 12
17. Penn St. 9-4 542 —
18. Auburn 11-2 519 9
19. Florida St. 7-6 392 —
20. Nebraska 9-5 377 —
21. Arkansas 10-4 376 15
22. TCU 11-2 283 22
23. Hawaii 11-3 256 —
24. Boise St. 13-0 187 5
25. Texas A&M 9-4 162 —

Others receiving votes: Missouri 128, Georgia Tech 94, Boston College 75, Oregon 73, South Carolina 69, Miami 68, Alabama 66, Oregon St. 42, Wake Forest 40, South Florida 28, Arizona St. 17, BYU 14, Southern Miss. 12, Notre Dame 11, Virginia 7, Clemson 6, Oklahoma St. 3, Texas Tech 2, Houston 1, Kentucky 1, N.C. State 1, Purdue 1.

It was bound to happen, only a matter of time, but a running back from Southern Cal has decided that he would be better off playing for another school. The LA Times is reporting that sophomore Emmanuel Moody, USC’s second-leading rusher last season, will transfer.

According to Rivals.com, Moody was listed third on the depth chart behind CJ Gable and Chauncey Washington. This depth chart, however, does not include 5 star athletes Joe McKnight and Broderick Green.

The Trojans’ backfield is full of 5 star talent and there is only one football to go around, so it was not a big suprise to hear that Moody would be the first to jump ship. On the XM Sportsnation Show College Football Coast-to-Coast it is rumored that Moody would transfer to a school in Texas, closer to his hometown.