If you watched the NFL Draft this weekend, you will have noticed that the biggest cheer occurred when the Detroit Lions selected a Safety from Army by the name of Caleb Campbell. In the past when players from the Academies were selected to play in the pros, they still had to server their time, sometimes before they entered the pros.

Campbell becomes first Cadet drafted since 1997

But now the Army has made exceptions. They are offering theirtop athletes a side door to professional sports. West Point has implemented an alternative service option program that allows cadets to turn pro and play right away. Cadets accepted into the program “will owe two years of active service in the Army, during which time they will be allowed to play their sport in the player-development systems of their respective organizations and be assigned to recruiting stations. If they remain in professional sports following those two years, they will be provided the option of buying out the remaining three years of their active-duty commitment in exchange for six years of reserve time.”

On the surface this sounds great for the school and its recruitment process, but there are people (who have loved ones deployed) up in arms; citing special treatment for athletes. If you listen to the podcast you will remember that back in December in the 2007 wrap-up show I had a friend of mine from Seattle sit in and talk college football with me who is an Army Officer. My best-friend, CPT Lou Nemec, recently deployed to Iraq for a 12-15 month tour. I sent him an email yesterday asking his opinion on all of this, and I asked him to talk to some of the people around him and write me a general consensus response back to me and what he wrote is below. One disclaimer, I do not care what your stance is on the war, so any comments regarding that will be deleted.

“Everything is fine here, I just got my own room, so that’s a hell of a lot better than the 75 man tent I’ve been sleeping in while in Kuwait.

My thoughts on Caleb Campbell: The Army pays for your education, its their option to have you repay your debt to them however they see fit. If that’s leading troops because they deem that’s your area of expertise or special skill, that’s their choice. If its playing football in the NFL and doing PR tours at local recruiting offices and Army events then that’s their choice as well. I think its great for both the Army and West Point to have a player able to go straight into the NFL. The academies have been struggling lately and what better way to showcase that they are still competitive and produce world-class athletes. They already do the same thing with the World Class Athlete Program. Specially talented athletes join the Army and then do nothing but train for their sport leading up to the Olympics and do PR gigs for the Army. Its a mutually beneficial relationship and I see the same thing with Caleb Campbell. While he might make 1 good officer, his notoriety in the NFL might bring 1000 good officers into the Army. The benefits curve is exponential for both parties. Believe me, there are plenty of troops in Iraq doing their time and very few would begrudge Caleb Campbell the opportunity to represent them in the NFL.

That’s how I feel about that. So thanks for the great question and I’ll have you know I’ve been listening to my podcasts on my IPOD. That thing is great. Alright buddy, take care of yourself and get that golf swing in tune for the summer.”

Lou

I know Lou’s response does not represent every soldier’s but I thought it would be nice to get his opinion. Only time will tell if this does help Army with their recruiting and if Air Force and Navy follow suit with rules like this for their own. But I can tell you this, college football would be a lot better with the likes of Army, Navy, and Air Force contending in the Top 25.

This is the final segment for the 2008 NFL Mock draft. Earlier we looked at picks 1-10 and picks 11-20. In here we finish the first round. This mock draft will be presented in the form of a mock draft, but is not meant to be predictive. Rather, with each team we’ll take a look at their needs, and who is likely to be available that they might covet.

Vince Young would love to throw to this Longhorn

21. Washington (needs - WR, defensive line, CB) - Phillip Merling, DE, Clemson - Merling is a run-stuffing DE, as opposed to a pass rusher like Derrick Harvey.

22. Dallas (needs - CB, WR, RB) - Antoine Cason, CB, Arizona - Very similar profile to Mike Jenkins, but not quite as athletic. I don’t buy the rumors that Dallas wants to trade up to get McFadden. Dallas needs youth at both DB and WR, and I expect them to use one of their first round picks on each position.

23. Pittsburgh (needs - offensive line, tall WR) - Gosder Cherilus, OT, Boston College - Pittsburgh’s o-line collapsed last year, and then they lost their best linemen to free agency. Cherilus is one of the last lineman worthy of a 1st round pick, and he might not be available. Cherilus is a big mauler who may be best suited for guard, which suits the Steelers needs fine. If Cherilus is gone, they may look at Limas Sweed or James Hardy.

24. Tennessee (needs - WR, defensive line) - Limas Sweed, WR, Texas - Vince Young needs targets. Sweed missed most of his last college season with a bum wrist, but it doesn’t sound like an injury that will have long-term implications. He’s big (6′4″, 220), athletic, and is familiar with Young’s strengths and weaknesses.

25. Seattle (needs - RB, offensive line, DT, CB) - Felix Jones, RB, Arkansas - The Seahawks don’t have a lot of needs, but RB is clearly one of them. Jones is thought to be vaguely similar to Shaun Alexander, and is also an outstanding kick returner.

Jones can make it 2 Hog RBs in the First Round

26. Jacksonville (needs - DE, offensive line) - Calais Campbell, DE, Miami - Jacksonville needs a pash rushing defensive end, so they may look to move up to snag Derrick Harvey. If they can’t pull that off, Campbell is likely to be available. Campbell has all the potential in the world, but has rarely been able to channel that on the football field. His draft range is all over the place - he could get picked as high as the second half of the first round, he could slip to the 3rd round.

27. San Diego (defensive line, defensive back, RB) - Kenny Phillips, FS, Miami - The Chargers have few obvious holes, but could use some depth at a number of positions. Kenny Phillips would be solid value here. He’s far and away the highest rated safety in this class, and has a similar profile to Sean Taylor, although he’s not quite as well-regarded a talent.

28. Dallas (needs - CB, WR, RB) - James Hardy, WR, Indiana - Hardy has some pretty striking negatives. His character and his work ethic are question marks, and he’s not a great athlete. On the other hand, he’s really tall (6′6″) which makes him a weapon at the goal line.

29. San Francisco (needs - WR, offensive line) - Malcolm Kelly, WR, Oklahoma - The WR version of Adrian Peterson? From Oklahoma, very productive, very talented, but significant durability concerns. The 49ers were a trendy pick for the playoffs a year ago; their roster looks really poor now, particularly on the offensive side.

30. Green Bay (needs - CB, offensive line, TE) - Sam Baker, OT, USC - Green Bay does not have many obvious needs, but they have some aging players at key positions, like CB and offensive line. They may look for a TE here (Purdue’s Dustin Keller, perhaps), but I have a feeling they’ll try to shore up their o-line to make things as easy for Aaron Rogers as possible. Baker could probably play any position on the O-line, and he’s a good athlete.

31. NY Giants (needs - defensive back, offensive line) - Aqib Talib, CB, Kansas - Talib has as much talent as any DB in this draft, but is apparently a pothead (reports that he failed multiple drug tests in college), which will hurt his stock. The Giants may also look at Auburn product Quentin Groves as the eventual succesor to Michael Strahan, or somebody like Xavier Adibi from Virginia Tech, to replace Kawika Mitchell.

If you missed picks 1-10, you can find them here. In this part we will look at picks 11-20 which reflect the Jared Allen trade. This mock draft will be presented in the form of a mock draft, but is not meant to be predictive. Rather, with each team we’ll take a look at their needs, and who is likely to be available that they might covet.

Could Matt Ryan be this year’s Brady Quinn?

11. Buffalo (needs - DE, CB, WR) - Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie, CB, Tennessee State - Buffalo is rumored to be working a trade with Philadelphia, involving Lito Shepperd and a swap of 1st round picks. DRC is a tremendous athlete, but pretty raw as a CB. He’s a first round pick based mostly on his combine. If Buffalo trades the pick, they will not be needing a CB, and will likely be targeting a possession WR, like Malcolm Kelly or Limas Sweed.

12. Denver (needs - DT, OL) - Chris Williams, OT, Vanderbilt - Denver is one of those teams that may like to try to move up to get Sedrick Ellis. Failing that, they will likely settle for the best available offensive lineman. Williams is very athletic, appears to be a good fit with Denver’s system, and should play left tackle eventually.

13. Carolina (needs - RB, offensive line, defensive line) - Matt Ryan, QB, Boston College - Ryan’s senior year was in some ways the converse of Brady Quinn’s senior year. Quinn started his senior year as the Heisman Trophy favorite, and, despite playing well, was viewed less and less favorably as a prospect, eventually being picked by Cleveland with their SECOND pick of the draft. Matt Ryan started his senior season as one of a bunch of QBs behind Brian Brohm, and, despite not playing much better than he had as a junior, gradually climbed up the prospect boards until he was the consensus top quarterback, and a potential #1 overall pick. Its hard to explain why Ryan is viewed as the better prospect than Brohm; BC had a better year than Louisville, but mostly that was because of the way the respective defenses played. Nevertheless, Ryan will be the 1st QB taken. Carolina has more pressing needs, but its hard to believe they’d pass on a potential franchise qb.

14. Chicago (needs - OL, WR, RB) - Devin Thomas, WR, Michigan State - Chicago is like Carolina, they’re pretending they don’t need a QB, but aren’t actually fooling anybody. If Ryan is still around, they’ll probably take him. Their most glaring deficiency is at WR, and Thomas looks to be a good one. Good size (6′2″, 215), good athlete, good hands, more of a possession receiver/red zone type, also returned kicks in college. The Bears also need help at OL and RB, which might mean either Jeff Otah or Rashard Mendenhall. Also, don’t rule out Brian Brohm this early.

15. Detroit (needs - LB, CB, OL, RB) - Derrick Harvey, DE, Florida - Harvey is perhaps comparable to Dwight Freeney, and may have ruined Troy Smith’s shot at being taken in the first round - Harvey absolutely demolished Ohio State in the BCS Championship Game two years back. Detroit has a lot of needs, and could go in a lot of different directions. Harvey is likely to be coveted by a number of teams who might try to trade up to get him, such as Jacksonville, Minnesota, and Washington.

Brohm might have been a Top 10 pick in 2007

16. Arizona (needs - RB, CB, WR) - Rashard Mendenhall, RB, Illinois - This is a very deep draft for RBs, so its likely that some teams that need one in the first round will fill a different need, thinking to pick up somebody like Ray Rice or Matt Forte later in the draft. Mendenhall has ideal size (5′11″, 210), good vision, outstanding measurables, and was productive and durable in college, also excelling in the passing game. Arizona may look at one of the CBs available, as well.

17. Kansas City (from Minnesota) (needs: offensive line, CB) - Mike Jenkins, CB, South Florida - The Chiefs traded for this pick on Tuesday, as part of a trade for Jared Allen. Jenkins is a big (6′0″, 200), physical cover corner who could probably also play safety. The Chiefs also now have a hole at defensive end to fill; they may have made the trade thinking either Vernon Gholston or Chris Long would be available at #5, or they may be targeting Phillip Merling or Derrick Harvey here.

18. Houston (needs - RB, CB) - Jonathan Stewart, RB, Oregon - Houston is the team most likely to draft a RB in the first round. Stewart is a power back, possibly comparable to Michael Turner, who played in a spread offense in college.

19. Philadelphia (needs - OL, WR) - Jeff Otah, OT, Pittsburgh - As mentioned, Philadelphia is rumored to be working on a trade with Buffalo. I think Otah is the player they are targeting, but I don’t see who would pick Otah between 11 and 19, so I don’t think Philadelphia needs to trade. If Otah isn’t available, Philadelphia may look at somebody like Gosder Cherilus. All signs point to Philly picking an offensive lineman. Otah is considered a right tackle - he’s enormous, and powerful, but not particularly agile.

20. Tampa Bay (needs - QB, WR, defensive line) - Brian Brohm, QB, Louisville - As I said above, I’m not clear why some people are down on Brohm. He really couldn’t have played better as a senior, although Louisville’s defense could have. Obviously, that can’t be held against him. He was criticized for skipping the Senior Bowl, but Matt Ryan also skipped the Senior Bowl. Brohm is generally acknowledged as the more accurate passer, and has superior footwork. Ryan’s advantages are durability, and intangibles. Both are good prospects, and Tampa seems like a good fit for Brohm - he seems comparable to Rich Gannon, who flourished under Jon Gruden.

Tomorrow we finish off the draft with the remaining picks.

This will be presented in the form of a mock draft, but is not meant to be predictive. Rather, with each team we’ll take a look at their needs, and who is likely to be available that they might covet. Not being an insider, all that I know is that Miami will pick Jake Long, since they have negotiated a contract with him already.

Jake Long already knows he’s #1

1. Miami - Jake Long, OT, Michigan - Jake Long is a very good prospect. He’s more skilled as a run-blocker than a pass-blocker, and is probably not as good as Joe Thomas, Cleveland’s outstanding rookie LT, but is at least in that neighborhood. He has outstanding work ethic and character, marking him as an extremely safe pick.

2. St. Louis (needs: WR, defensive line, LB, CB) - Chris Long, DE/OLB, Virginia - A number of teams, including St. Louis, are moving to what you might call a 3-4 hybrid defense, with one of the OLB’s being essentially a smaller, faster DE - the Patriots did that for years with Willie McGinest as a pass-rushing OLB. There are also a number of potential 1st round picks who will be able to fill that role - Long, Quentin Groves from Auburn, Vernon Gholston. Chris Long is also capable of fitting into a traditional 4-3, making him one of the most versatile players in this draft. St. Louis might also consider Vernon Gholston or Glen Dorsey.

3. Atlanta (needs: Everything but RB) - Glenn Dorsey, DT, LSU - If it weren’t for some knee trouble as a senior, Dorsey would almost certainly be the top pick in this draft. He’s clearly the best prospect in this class, but just as clearly brings some degree of medical risk. Defensive tackles have a fairly high flame-out rate: Steve Entman and Courtney Brown come to mind. Still, if the doctors and trainers can keep him at 100%, Dorsey could be the best player in this draft. Dorsey making it past Atlanta would be a major shock, but if St. Louis were to pick Dorsey, Atlanta might look long and hard at Matt Ryan, Sedrick Ellis, or Vernon Gholston.

4. Oakland (needs: WR, offensive line, defensive line) - Vernon Gholston, OLB, Ohio State - Gholston is a very impressive looking pass-rusher, but doesn’t bring much else to the table. Like Dorsey, he’s something of a high-risk pick, but for different reasons: On most Saturdays, Gholston, despite his awesome physical gifts, was not the best defensive player on the field. That doesn’t mean he can’t be good on Sundays, but Oakland doesn’t seem like the best destination for a high risk pick. Darren McFadden might make more sense for Oakland; their #1 pick last year was a QB, and it would be wise to provide Russell with some support. I think Oakland would also like to trade out of this pick, but it doesn’t seem likely to me that they will be able to.

5. Kansas City (needs: offensive line, CB) - Ryan Clady, OT, Boise State - The Chiefs are probably the first team in a good position to trade down. There are a number of teams who will covet Sedrick Ellis, Matt Ryan, or Darren McFadden, and KC can still trade down and get a good OL prospect. If KC keeps the pick, they will probably use it on Clady, an early entrant from Boise State. He looks like the ideal left tackle, but is thought to be something of a project, probably because he played in the WAC instead of the Pac 10. The Chiefs might also consider Matt Ryan here.

Will McFadden Fall out of the Top 10?

6. NY Jets (needs - offensive line, DB) - Darren McFadden, RB, Arkansas - Like Miami and Oakland, the Jets have signed a lot of players in the offseason. Like Kansas City, the Jets are in a good position to trade down should they want to. McFadden, you probably know about - he had a tremendous college career, finishing 2nd in the Heisman Trophy voting twice, and is compared to Adrian Peterson without the injury issues. He should be one of the best RBs in the league eventually, if not as a rookie.

7. New England (needs - CB, LB) - Branden Albert, OL, Virginia - New England is hard to read, but their two best CBs signed free agent contracts with other teams, leaving that particular cupboard bare. Its pretty unusual for a rookie CB to make much of an impact, and all of the top CBs in this class seem unlikely to go against that trend. New England’s current management has a history of valuing linemen, both offensive and defensive, more highly than just about any other position, and the offensive line fell apart in the Super Bowl. Albert was on the field in the ACC as a true freshman, unusual for an offensive lineman, and is versatile enough to play anywhere on the offensive line, including left tackle. Trading down is a strong possibility here, as well, and they certainly might pick a CB.

8. Baltimore (needs - CB, QB, WR, OT, OLB) - Leodis McKelvin, CB, Troy State - The Ravens can’t be too confident with Kyle Boller and Troy Smith at QB, but this organization’s strength has been defense, a unit which desperately needs an infusion of youth. Matt Ryan is the best QB in this class, but not by a lot, and the Ravens may be able to get Chad Henne or Joe Flacco in the second round, or even somebody like Andre Woodson or J.D. Booty on the second day. McKelvin is smallish and raw at corner, but is a tremendous kick returner, so this would be a good situation for him: He could ease into the lineup as a nickelback, and make his impact returning kicks.

9. Cincinnati (needs - defense, WR) - Sedrick Ellis, DT, USC - Like Dorsey, Ellis is a tremendous athlete who has had some leg injuries, but for some reason is not considered as risky a pick. After Ellis, there’s a big drop off at DT, so there could be some teams trying to move up to get him. Cincinnati needs help all over the defense, but especially on the defensive line. The Chad Johnson saga could obviously impact what Cincinnati does on draft day, so keep an eye on that situation.

10. New Orleans (needs - defense, offensive line, WR) - Keith Rivers, OLB, USC - New Orleans LBs were awful last year, so Rivers should be able to play right away. He’s fast and athletic, and could play any one of the three LB positions, but is probably best suited to weak-side. Rivers will probably be able to make an immediate impact. The Saints offensive line was very inconsistent last year, so they may consider somebody like Jeff Otah as well.

Tomorrow we will look at picks 10-20.

Just to get you in the correct mood for this post, watch this first:

First we start in the nation’s heartland where new coach Bo Pelini has visions of bring back Nebraska football to the way it was in the mid 90s, but don’t expect any miracles to happen for this year. That doesn’t mean there is not optimism for the Husker fans. There have been reports that fans have paid in excess of $95 to see a practice game. Seriously, we’re talking about practice here, not a game, but practice. Corn Nation has a list of the teams for the practice game over on his site. Sometimes I wonder about that guy, he would rather watch how the hogs are doing up front than the skilled guys.

Mitch couldn’t beat out Sanchez

Keeping in the Big 12 North, the Missouri Tigers might not even have enough players to field a team for their spring game. The latest is backup O-Lineman Austin Wuebbles got arrested when the cops found marijuana and a metal marijuana smoking pipe. It doesn’t end there, Wuebbles also had a fake ID and beer in his car. Instead of having football practice, maybe the Tigers’ coaching staff should hold practice on how to act like a normal adult. But I got to hand it to Big Head, even when faced with all this trouble for his team, he still knows how to rub one in on his rival.

The players over at UCLA must have a little bit of Allen Iverson syndrome since the seniors thought they were too good to practice. Actually it is a time honored tradition where the Seniors skipped a practice, but most of Bruin Nation, including offensive coordinator Norm Chow, isn’t laughing at all. I thought all that Senior skip stuff was only done in High School? Maybe it is a sign to Bruins fans that this year’s team might resemble a high school one. But even with the missed practice. head coach Rick Neuheisel has seen enough of the quarterback battle to name Patrick Cowan the starter over Ben Olson.

One way to get out of practice is to not attend class and get ruled ineligible to participate in practice in the Spring. That was what happened to USC’s Joe McKnight. McKnight dropped a class in the Spring and that put him below the 12 credits needed to participate. This should have no bearing on his fall eligibility though. Unlike McKnight, Mark Sanchez took full advantage of his time on the field last year and in spring practice this year. So much so that Pete Carroll named Sanchez the starter for the fall over Mitch Mustain. I don’t think this is much of a surprise given that Sanchez has been with the program for awhile, and has game experience. But one has to wonder if Mustain is second guessing his decision to transfer to USC and not another team with a quarterback situation that would’ve better suited him.

Ryan doesn’t need practice!!

If you are envious of Joe McKnight not having to go to class and therefore forfeiting his right to practice, Ryan Perrilloux has one upped McKnight. Not only did Perrilloux not practice with LSU much (if at all) this spring, he got in trouble at a local bar, he was suspended due to violating team rules, and has academic problems (says Miles). One writer says that LSU should dismiss Perrilloux for these violations, but we all know that won’t happen, especially in the SEC. One would think that a player that has gotten into so much trouble would either have to work in practice to get his job back, or be off the team all together. No way, Miles tells us that it was all a misunderstanding, no one knows what is going on inside his team but him and that Perrilloux is key to the success of the Tigers.

In Hawaii I am sure they are longing for Yesterday, but without Colt Brennan and his cast of characters, including June Jones, the Warriors are trying to find out in practice what kind of team they will have this year. This team will have to travel to Florida to play the Gators early in the season, ouch! This Hawaii football blog is a good source of info for the Warriors and how they are progressing through the 2008 Spring practice drills.

Finally, I will be heading up to State College to watch the annual Penn State Blue and White practice Game. One of the battles I have been watching closely is the quarterback one. Both Daryll Clark and Pat Devlin have looked good in practice, and even though many think it is Clark’s to lose due to Paterno’s allegiance to the older one, I think this will continue into the fall. And maybe into the season. This is a case where I believe we could seen another two quarterback system in Happy Valley, like in 1999 with Kevin Thompson and Rashard Casey. For more coverage of the happenings in the Valley, check out the Blue and White Roundtable.

Well all in all I got 18 practices in, not bad but no where near as good as Mr. Iverson.

Has Joe lost his touch?

April 19th is a day that I had circled on my calender since the ending of the BCS Championship game in January. Why April 19th you ask? Because that was the day I got my spring fix of football as I head up to Penn State to see the Annual Blue-White Game. Usually it is a time filled with optimism about the upcoming season and a time to welcome in spring with a few burgers and beers. But the time between the Alamo Bowl and the Blue-White Scrimmage has been anything but fun for Penn State fans.

Bruce Feldman writes in his latest blog about Unhappy Valley for Lions. In that blog entry he talks about all the trouble that the Nittany Lions players have gotten into lately, whether it be Chris Bell pulling a knife on a teammate, Chris Baker being charged in two fights, or Andrew Quarless getting a DUI which is his second drinking offense in as many years. Add to that the leader of the team Sean Lee tearing his ACL, and Penn State fans haven’t had much to cheer about since that Alamo Bowl victory.

In Bruce’s blog he asks what Penn State fans think of what is going on in Happy Valley, and our take on it. Here is the email I wrote to him.

There are a few reasons why I think all of this trouble is going on at Penn State, and some of it isn’t really new. With the internet, you tube, and everyone wanting information now, it is much harder cover up bad behavior by student-athletes. One little mess up at a bar and all it takes is someone with a camera phone, or even someone with a blog to post it. I am sure bad behavior such as fights and underage drinking went on at Penn State but it was much easier for Joe to handle it. The cops would just call him and he would handle it internally, now that doesn’t happen anymore. It becomes front page news.

Many people say that Joe has lost his team, that since he works at home most of the time he doesn’t have the same grasp over his team like he use to. To an extent that is true, but he has delegated a lot of that to the staff. But in the end it is up to the football players to police themselves. Their coaches can’t be babysitters, they are grown men and there is only so much time the coaches can be in contact with them in a day. In my opinion this team, as well as most other Penn State teams since 2000 (minus 2005) are lacking leadership. They are lacking that presence in the locker room that will kick your butt if you get out of line. A group of people that will call you out in front of your peer if you do something wrong and set a good example with their actions, not only on the field but in the community too.

I’m sure you noticed this when you wrote Meat Market, but kids now have this aura of self-entitlement. They feel they should be given everything just because who they are and what potential they have going for them. Take Chris Bell for instance, he was trouble since Penn State started recruiting him. On his trip he stepped on the “S” in the middle of the locker room and when the players told him he had to do push ups…he refused. In High School these kids were treated like gods, and I’m sure they weren’t saints there. But it was easier for their bad behavior to get swept under the rug in a smaller town, with less spotlight on them.

Which brings me to my next point; I think Joe and his staff has taken more chances on players with character issues than in years past. After going through those losing skids, I think he realized that he needed to get better athletes in the program and with that it included taking in some kids in which he might have passed on before because of their character. It is great if those kids get their act straight or if Joe can get through to them and turn their attitude around, but that doesn’t happen all the time. He is over 80 years old and some what out of touch with today’s young adults, so that task might be more difficult than it at first thought for him.

You made a quote in your blog: “According to Bracken’s column, there have been over 60 Penn State players who “have run afoul of the law just since 2002.” That is a staggering number, especially for a program that has had a long reputation for doing things the right way.”"

For years Penn State touted “Success With Honor” and winning the right way. When you start waving that around it is great when your team is winning and your kids aren’t getting in trouble, but once they start getting in trouble, the media and opposing fans are going to make sure you hear about it. They are going to point out that your program is getting in trouble in the police blotter and how you rubbed it in for years that you won without this happening. It is a way for the rest of the college football world to chuckle.

As far as the subject of Joe Paterno as head coach of the Nittany Lions; put me in the camp that is undecided. Ivan Maisel writes an excellent article on Paterno. Yes there is a air of uncertainty surrounding the program, but there still is something to be said for a man doing as well as he is at 81, coaching a major university. Plus there are still kids out there that want to play for a legend like Paterno. I guess my big wish is for him to come down a peg or two and start to lay out plans for when he does decide to hang it up. Maybe he has already done it behind the scenes, but if I were a betting man, I suspect he hasn’t just yet.

I usually don’t like to take an entire week off without posting anything on the blog, but last week was just one of those weeks. I had the pleasure to go and visit the most beautiful golf courses in the world last Monday; Augusta National. Last Monday I got to walk around the course and take pictures, and if you are a golf fan reading this, try and find someway to see the course. You’ll thank me later.

Okay, enough about golf and back to college football. Later this week I’ll post my Bold Predictions for my surprise and disappointing teams for the 2008 college football season. I hope you were lucky enough to catch College Game Day this Saturday. It was 2 hours of jam packed fun, followed by the Florida spring game. The best part about it all, no not that Kirk, Lee, and Chris were talking about College Football in April, but we got some nice shots of Erin Andrews. It’s always nice to see her in the sun.

One final note, I got an email saying that there has been trouble posting comments to the site. Is anyone else having this issue? If so, shoot me an email and I’ll do what I can to fix it. I was thinking about making everyone have to register, but I didn’t want to have to go that far.

One of my favorite things about blogging is making predictions, then when they come true I can brag about them. If they don’t come true, I can pretend they never occurred but still boast about the ones I got correct or nearly right. In the second part of MIZZOURAH’s bold predictions, we predict the 2008 BCS Games, Heisman Winners, Surprise teams, and teams doomed to disappoint us. Below I will lay out my thought process for my choices for the BCS games and potential Heisman winners. Next week I will talk about my picks for Surprise and Disappointing teams in 2008.

Get use to the name Cullen Harper

It’s April and spring time, time for new beginnings and fresh starts. So here is my first crack at who will be in the BCS Games come January of 2009.

BCS Title Game
USC vs Georgia - No surprise here if you followed who I voted in the top 2 of my Top 10 in Bold predictions. Both teams return a lot of talent, although USC will be a little green at quarterback, but both Sanchez and Mustain have a lot of potential. I really like the duo of Stafford and Moreno to be one best in the country. Also when you have defensive lineman that can run down WR, it can’t hurt either (See 2008 Sugar Bowl).

Rose Bowl
Ohio State vs Arizona State - As you can see I like Ohio State to win the Big Ten and keeping with the Tradition, I expect the Rose Bowl committee to pick the #2 team in the Pac-10 to replace USC in this spot. I like what the Sun Devils have coming back and think they have a good shot at finishing up high.

Sugar Bowl
Missouri vs Florida - Since the Sugar Bowl lost Georgia, they easily replace it with the Gators who boast the 2007 Heisman winner and possibly the 2008 one too (see Heisman predictions below). Missouri once again should finish at the top of the Big 12 North, but once again will fall to Oklahoma in the title game. However, unlike in 2008, the Tigers will get a BCS bid in 2009.

Orange Bowl
Clemson vs West Virginia - The best quarterback in the country that no one is talking about is Cullen Harper of Clemson. Harper along with the backfield tandem of CJ Spiller and James Davis is going to make Clemson a favorite in the ACC which does not look that tough. West Virginia who returns Pat White and Noel Devine on offense should be the favorites in the Big East.

Fiesta Bowl
Oklahoma vs Wisconsin - I already stated before that I believe Oklahoma will beat Missouri in the Big 12 title game. The second pick was a little tougher since the BCS rules state that no conference can have more than 2 teams in the BCS. I gave Fresno State a little thought as an at-large, but settled with Wisconsin. I think the Badgers are the second best team in the Big Ten and could be the Buckeyes’ biggest obstacle in capturing their 3rd outright Big Ten title in as many years.

Heisman Trophy

Harvin: Running through a defense near you in 2008

I am going to follow one of the Heismandment which state no more two-time winners, and eliminate Tim Tebow. But I do think someone from Tebow’s team will be in the race for the Heisman. Percy Harvin is an amazing athlete and does something extraordinary every time he touches the ball. Even in the Capital One Bowl loss to Michigan he did well, and it still baffles me why he didn’t get more touches in that game. Harvin is a running back/wide receiver hybrid and will take some of the load off Tebow this year.

My next thought for Heisman is from THE Ohio State University, Mr. Chris “Beanie” Wells. He had 146 yards in the title game and nice 65 yard run where he outran everyone in the speedy LSU defense. Wells not only has speed but has the power to punish defenders who try and tackle him. With those two things going for him and the fact that the Buckeyes have a strong offensive line, Wells’ rushing number will be close to 2000 in 2008.

Finally I am going to go with Chase Daniel of Missouri for a 3rd pick. Chase was already through this last year and is a known commodity (see McFadden 2006/07). What Daniel has going for him is that Missouri should have another good year and he will put up some big numbers. For him to win, however, he must have that one huge game against an Oklahoma or a Texas.