1. James Madison Dukes (87) 4-1 2,684
2. Appalachian State Mountaineers 2-2 2,528
3. Montana Grizzlies (16) 4-0 2,455
4. McNeese State Cowboys (1) 2-1 2,360
5. New Hampshire Wildcats (3) 4-0 1,976
6. Richmond Spiders 3-2 1,733
7. Elon Phoenix 4-1 1,653
8. Cal Poly Mustangs 2-1 1,337
9. Wofford Terriers 3-1 1,242
10. Northern Iowa Panthers 2-2 1,228
11. Eastern Washington Eagles 2-2 1,206
12. The Citadel Bulldogs 3-1 1,193
13. Southern Illinois Salukis 2-1 1,155
14. Villanova Wildcats 3-1 1,117
15. Furman Paladins (1) 4-1 1,043
16. Delaware Blue Hens 2-2 935
17. North Dakota State Bison 2-2 855
18. Massachusetts Minutemen 2-2 784
19. Central Arkansas Bears 4-1 703
20. Liberty Flames 4-0 687
21. Western Illinois Leathernecks 2-2 681
22. Jacksonville State Gamecocks 3-1 650
23. South Dakota State Jackrabbits 3-2 559
24. Northern Arizona Lumberjacks 3-1 548
25. Brown Bears 2-0 481


Others receiving votes: Eastern Illinois 382, Lafayette 368, Tennessee State 267, Harvard 260, Holy Cross 251, Youngstown State 148, William & Mary 145, Hampton 143, Sam Houston State 130, Georgia Southern 66, Prairie View 56, San Diego 50, Weber State 42, Florida A&M 36, Cornell 24, Tennessee-Martin 21, North Dakota 10, Sacred Heart 7, Delaware State 6, Southeastern Louisiana 6, Montana State 4, Colgate 2, South Carolina State 2, Southern 2, Central Connecticut State 1, Coastal Carolina 1, Grambling 1.


9/28/08

In the words of the Bachman-Turner Overdrive, “You ain’t seen nothing yet”…if you thought last week was fun, it is just a glimpse of what you are going to see for the rest of the season. As Adam has said a few times now, with the high school talent increasing and the number of scholarships staying the same, “upsets” are going to be the norm in college football. Gone are the days where blowouts happen each week.

If you want to win a national championship you are going to have to bring your A game each and every week. Florida, Georgia, Wisconsin, Wake Forest, and Clemson all learned that last week. Those games didn’t just have implications on the National Title race but according to the Heisman Pundit, the Heisman chances of Tim Tebow, Matthew Stafford, and Knowshon Moreno also went up in smoke. In the podcast last week, I thought that Tebow was either out, or had one and a half feet out the door, and this loss solidifies that prediction.

So what can we expect for this week. Maybe not the same magnitude of upsets but there are a few games to keep an eye on. Penn State travels to play Purdue after coming off a big victory against Illinois. The Nittany Lions do not have as strong of a defense as in years past, and Purdue always gives the Lions trouble. It will be interesting to see if they can refocus in their first real test on the road which doesn’t get any easier as they will have to go to Madison the following week.

Also we have Missouri at Nebraska, which if you have watched both teams you are probably wondering why I am pointing out this game. Missouri’s defense is not strong, but their offense more than makes up for it, but the interesting stat for this game is that the Tigers have not beaten the Huskers in Lincoln since November 18, 1978. So they have some demons to exorcise.

Texas plays at Colorado. The Longhorns are a team flying a bit under the radar…still. Colorado got beat up pretty bad against Florida State last weekend, but remember they did win their last home game against West Virginia.

Don’t forget to listen to the podcast this week as Adam and I will give our Top 10 teams, and pick each big game for this upcoming weekend. It will be posted early Thursday morning.

It’s not often you get to review a book that could double as a murder weapon, but that’s the case with USA Today’s College Football Encyclopedia. The book is massive, coming in at 1,335 pages in small type at 8.5″ x 11″ and could easily double as a blunt instrument. As a book, however, the ‘USA Today College Football Encyclopedia’ is the most inclusive review of the last 50 years of college football available.

The encyclopedia provides reviews of 70 teams over the years 1953 to 2007. Each review contains basic school information, and career, season, and game statistical leaders - typical of stuff you’d find in a school’s media guide. The reviews include win-loss records, coaching records, and bowl records, the scores of all games.

The season’s starting lineups and statistical leaders are included - information that can be very hard to find, especially if you’re interested in going back all the way to 1953. The yearly reviews start with an entertaining and informative overview of each year, highlighting events on and off the field.

Preseason rankings are available, and a recap of games played between ranked teams and rivals are reviewed, which comes to more than 7,500 game recaps total. These don’t include *every* game ever played, but obviously a huge number of them, including a “Game of the Year” for each season. As an example, 1984’s game of the year was the Boston College win over Miami that included Doug Flutie’s famous Hail Mary pass. About that play, the book states:

and then the book continues to review the rest of the play and the rest of the game.

My favorite part of the book is the profiles of people who played key roles in the year in which they are profiled. Ernie Davis in 1961; Alex Karras (”Mongo” in Mel Brooks’ ‘Blazing Saddles’) in 1957; Woody Hayes in 1974; Eric Dickerson, Craig James, John Elway and Jackie Sherrill in 1982. Each profile gives you detailed information about that person’s life. I don’t have to do extensive searches or grab several books to find information, tons of it is already here and easily available.

Each year concludes with a listing of conference standings, bowl game reviews, All-America teams, Heisman Trophy voting along with other major award winners. As if that weren’t enough (but wait, there’s more!), you also get the first eight rounds of each season’s NFL draft.

At a cost under $20 (see the Amazon price above), it’s affordable as a historical reference. It’s handy for bloggers like me to find something interesting to write about and it should be in the hands of any college fans that likes to “one-up” their friends, and who doesn’t like to do that?

Since the site, mainly Wordpress, decided to not let me login, so I spent the majority of the time trying to fix the problem and I didn’t have time to prepare for this week’s Big Ten games. I will make predictions but the write ups will be shorter.

Michigan State at Indiana - ESPN 12pm - The Hooisers had a problem stopping Ball State last week and it will carry over to this week. I don’t expect Javon Ringer to get to 200 yards again; but he’ll get 150 yards against this porous Indiana defense. Michigan State’s defense is very underrated and should have another good showing against Kellen Lewis and the Hoosiers. Spartans in a blowout. Michigan State 38-10

Minnesota at Ohio State - Big Ten Network 12pm - Adam Weber has grown up a lot since last year and now he has a quality receiver in Eric Decker to throw to, the Gophers have become more dangerous on offense. Weber has also cut down on his interceptions, throwing only one this year so far. Ohio State will once again start Pryor at quarterback. Last week Pryor had 4 touchdown PASSES, and if Beanie Wells plays, this could be a very nice duo for the rest of this year. This game will be closer than expect, but the Buckeyes defense is solid and will be the deciding factor in the win. Ohio State 29-10

Northwestern at Iowa - ESPN Classic 12pm - If you would’ve told me at the beginning of the season that the combined record of these two teams would be 7-1 coming into this game, I would’ve said you are crazy. Iowa lost a heart breaker 21-20 to Pitt last week and cost me my perfect record for the week. The Hawkeyes still have yet to find quarterback consistency from Ricky Stanzi and Jake Christensen, While the Wildcats keep plugging along with CJ Bacher and Tyrell Sutton has found his groove back. The game is in Iowa City…advantage Iowa, Northwestern has the advantage on offense, but I believe it will be Iowa’s defense who is more tested and use to playing in tougher games that will give them the close win. Iowa 17-10

Purdue at Notre Dame - NBC 3:30pm - Notre Dame finally played a team with an offense and gave up over 200 yards on the ground. They finally played a team with a defense and only scored 7 points. I am not ready to say that Purdue’s defense is better than Michigan State’s but their offense are comparable. Purdue had a scare last week against Central Michigan but pulled it out in the end. I don’t think they will have as much to worry about this week, and beat the Irish by double digits. Purdue 30-20

Wisconsin at Michigan - ABC 3:30pm - Both teams are coming off a bye week, so no advantage there, but it was Michigan who needed it much more than the Badgers. This game will show the huge gap that Michigan will have to overcome to get back to the top of the Big Ten. Their defense will have a hard time stopping PJ Hill, while their offense will struggle to move the ball against the Badgers defense. Wisconsin wins a sleeper of a game. Wisconsin 35-9

Illinois at Penn State - ABC 8pm - This will be the first test for the Nittany Lions this season, and they look to avenge their loss at Illinois last year. Illinois has a strong kick returner in Arrelious Benn who torched the Lions last year and they are still having trouble with their kickoff coverage. Containing Juice Williams and making him pass instead of run should be a #1 priority for the Lion’s defense. Illinois has not looked their best at all this year and if they want to win they must keep the ball out of Penn State’s hands. They have so many weapons on offense with Daryll Clark, Evan Royster, Deon Butler, Derrick Williams, and Jordan Norwood. That’s not to mention maybe the best offensive line in the Big Ten. The Nittany Lions are 1-7 in their last 8 Big Ten openers, but I think they are going to be too much for the Illini to handle. Penn State 31-21

Last Week: 7-1 (.875)
Overall: 33-6 (.846)

From Stu Mandel’s latest mailbag…

We discussed this ad nauseam during last year’s rash of upsets, but simply put, the number of BCS-caliber athletes coming out of high school has never been greater, and there’s only so many scholarships those schools can offer. While that doesn’t stop a USC or Florida from hording five-star recruits, as you go further down the line, there’s not that big a disparity between the type pf players Oregon and Boise State are recruiting. And as we know well by now, talent alone does not win football games.

Sound familiar?

The point, as I’ve been saying, is simple. The increase in participation has moved us to a point where the supply of I-A caliber talent outweighs the demand for it at the I-A level for it. Obviously when something like this happens you end up seeing very capable players take the next best option- aka playing I-AA football. So while we’ve built these classifications of I-A and I-AA (as well as BCS conference and non-BCS conference) as meaning something in terms of talent differentiation, the reality of the situation is that the increased supply of capable football players has dramatically shrunk the supposed “talent gap” between divisions. Obviously this change began before the 2007 season, but as so often is the case, our perception of such a change remained nonexistent until 2007, when it finally took several groundbreaking upsets to alert the majority of us to it. Yet what of these “excess” Division I-A prospects that inevitably get funneled through the ranks of Division I-AA because of the laws of supply and demand? Are they in fact underrated, or are they undervalued?

You decide…

This week on the In The Bleachers Podcast, hosts Brian Sakowski and Adam Nettina dissect last week’s games and do a bit of stock up and stock down.

Once again we pick the games of the week which are as follows: Alabama at Georgia, Colorado at Florida State, Connecticut at Louisville, Illinois at Penn State, Maryland at Clemson, Minnesota at Ohio State, North Carolina at Miami, Purdue at Notre Dame, Tennessee at Auburn, and Virginia Tech at Nebraska.

To listen to the episode you can download it here, or subscribe as laid out below.

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. You can also search for “In The Bleachers” on iTunes and subscribe to the podcast that way.

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.

On tonight’s In The Bleachers Live, Adam Nettina and I will preview next week’s action as well as look at the games from the previous week. We will play stock-up and stock-down with teams, players, and coaches.

With conference play in full swing all around the country, we are in a treat with a lot of good games this week. Some of the games that we will be picking are Illinois at Penn State, Alabama at Georgia, Tennessee at Auburn, Maryland at Clemson, and Virginia Tech at Nebraska. There will be more so make sure you tune in to get the complete analysis of the games.

Once again we will be using Talkshoe to do the live podcast. If you plan on being there, sign up for a username so I know who you are when you are in the chat room. It only takes a few seconds and it is free! The information for tonight’s live podcast is below:

In The Bleachers Live Podcast Link
When: 9:00 EST
Phone Number to Call In: (724) 444-7444
Talkcast ID: 81065


1. Richmond Spiders (49) 3-1 2,389
2. James Madison Dukes (37) 3-1 2,387
3. Appalachian State Mountaineers 1-2 2,122
4. Montana Grizzlies (12) 3-0 2,095
5. Northern Iowa Panthers (2) 2-1 1,979
6. McNeese State Cowboys 1-1 1,760
7. New Hampshire Wildcats (1) 3-0 1,528
8. Elon Phoenix 3-1 1,306
9. Cal Poly Mustangs 2-1 1,272
10. North Dakota State Bison 2-2 1,257
11. Eastern Washington Eagles 1-2 1,197
12. Central Arkansas Bears 4-0 1,184
13. The Citadel Bulldogs 2-1 1,155
14. Wofford Terriers 2-1 1,137
15. Southern Illinois Salukis 1-1 1,115
16. Furman Paladins 3-1 970
17. Delaware Blue Hens 1-2 880
18. Massachusetts Minutemen 2-2 870
19. Villanova Wildcats 2-1 863
20. South Dakota State Jackrabbits 2-2 773
21. Eastern Illinois Panthers 2-2 754
22. Western Illinois Leathernecks 2-2 743
23. Tennessee State Tigers (1) 4-0 576
24. Georgia Southern Eagles 2-2 544
25. Liberty Flames 3-0 431


Others receiving votes: Harvard 331, Youngstown State 276, Northern Arizona 273, Yale 251, Jacksonville State 224, Hampton 106, San Diego 71, Prairie View 59, William & Mary 50, Brown 44, Florida A&M 43, Holy Cross 38, Penn 30, Weber State 28, Sam Houston State 22, Eastern Kentucky 14, Southeastern Louisiana 13, Lafayette 10, Sacred Heart 9, Delaware State 8, South Carolina State 8, Norfolk State 5, Princeton 4, Tennessee-Martin 4, Montana State 1, North Dakota 1,.


9/22/08

Dear Diary.

I think I finally figured out what a Hokie is. It’s a two faced, starting job promising liar. We believe in you Sean, your our guy Sean. Tyrod is being redshirted Sean. You’re the starting QB this year Sean.” Gee Wiz Sloth, I mean Frank, that’s what you said last year. Frankly I should have known better, but I figured, this is my senior year. I was supposed to be the big man on campus. Driving around in my newly supped up pimpmobile.

My mom went and got all dolled up to sit in the parents section, and my pops even got himself a new camera. But now thanks to Frank and his Indian giving ways my dad has gotten sick of taking pictures of me on the sidelines. As a result, lately mom and I have found some pictures on his phone that we find a little disconcerting.

It wasn’t supposed to go down like this. My first ever pass was for a touchdown. I’ve been carried off the field in the arms of Cheerleaders dammit, one of which I even touched her boob. And not just grazed, but an open hand cup for at least 3 battleships, documented by photographic proof. The world was my oyster.

Ever since that LSU game its been downhill. Well EXCUSE ME for losing on the road to the eventual National Champions. What was I thinking getting burned for 48 points, oh wait I DON’T PLAY DEFENSE. One bad game and you bring in the Freshman.

Him and his fancy feet. Don’t they realize if he wants to run with the ball 90% of the time, we have a position for that. Heck, I will even hand it off to him. But noo.. a running quarter back reminds everyone of the good ole days. They called him the second coming of Vick. Not the trouble maker one, the other one. You know, the one that has only been arrested once, granted the jail sentence was longer but still he waited until after college to disgrace his team.

Regardless, I sucked it up, though it was confusing at times, I was a team player and not only did I take our team to the ACC championship game, but we won the damn thing. I guess I had a decent game, I mean some would probably consider winning THE ACC CHAMPIONSHIP MVP OF THE GAME to be outstanding and a testament to my abilities as a QB. Oh, but not Frankie boy. One little stumble this year against ECU, and I was almost kicked off the team. After sputtering to a 3-0 lead over 1AA Furman; Frank basically hid my jersey from me at halftime. I said screw that, I’ll make my own. That’s what you call ingenuity, it’s a trait leaders possess. Look it up Frank, and while you are doing that look up in the stands and see all of the #7 jerseys looking back at you.

Sure some of them are left over Vick jerseys that people are either too cheap or too lazy to replace. Not that they have to replace the whole jersey, but for $11.99 you could have the Vick nameplate removed, and a Glennon one sewn in its place. Heck for $6 you could just sew the Glennon plate on top of the vick plate. I priced it out in town at MISH MISH and they said they could give us a better deal if we did it in bulk. So let’s get off our butts people, the season hangs in the balance. And I hate to break it to ya, but the Hokie Pokie aint helping no one.
I just hope when Frank and his buddy Tyrod, are Thelma and Louising Hokie Nation off a cliff that if called upon, I can summon some of my ACC MVP football prowess to muster them out of whatever jam Sloth got them into.

Until then, don’t choke

Glennon out!!

I’m done, I’m tired of it, I won’t do it again for the rest of the season…I’ve given up trying to look at conferences as a whole and trying to figure out strengths. Which conference is the best, which one sucks. It is a lost cause anymore. But I have come to one conclusion about this college football season, there are a handful (maybe 5) really good teams, while the rest of teams are so close, they are only separated by a player here or there.

The teams that I think are head and shoulders above the rest are: USC, Oklahoma, Missouri, and Florida. I am not ready to throw Georgia or LSU in that mix just yet. If Georgia does beat Alabama this weekend, I promise to add them to my 5. Another team right on that bubble is the Texas Longhorns. Mack Brown’s team is flying way under the radar, taking care of business in convincing fashion. Their first real test will come in two weeks again Colorado.

What has happened to Tennessee? First they lose an overtime game at UCLA, who to be honest, has looked like the bottom tier Pac-10 team that I thought they would be. Then the Vols did not any kind of fight against Florida in their 30-6 loss on Saturday. With the emergence of Vanderbilt, Tennessee could be the 4th or 5th best team in the SEC East.

The Big Ten boasts 4 teams who are undefeated right now: Wisconsin, Penn State, Minnesota, and Northwestern. With Big Ten play starting this week I think we will see the Gophers and Wildcats fall back to the pack a bit. I still say Northwestern makes a bowl game this year. The team I still like is the Michigan State Spartans. Javon Ringer had another 200 yard game against the Irish, and with a ball control offense like they have and a tough defense, the Spartans are going to finish in the Top 4 of the Big Ten this season.

We all forget that the Connecticut Huskies had a chance to win the Big East last year, but West Virginia put an end to it. But look out, they are 4-0 again! The Huskies play Louisville on Friday, and with only South Florida emerging in the Big East, the Huskies can once again have a shot at the Big East Championship.

That is it for now…more to come later.