Also you will find the second installment of the Bologna Chopshop where Jeff Brancolini ties together past Heisman winners to predict this year’s winner. He calls it the “circle of continuity”.

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.

If you can’t make the live podcast, don’t worry. I will still post the file on the site and all of your feedburner and iTunes subscriptions will still get the In The Bleachers Podcast. By doing the show live, we hope to get some listener interaction via the chat room or even if you want to call in.

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

Johnson wants to make it 6 years of bowling

If it isn’t already in your RSS Feeds, July is a great month to head over to Saturday Soundoffs. Eric, who has joined the ITB staff, has started his two-a-days which are excellent. Yesterday he took a look at Colorado State and North Dakota State.

Former Navy coach and new Georgia Tech coach Paul Johnson has his hands full this year with the Yellow Jackets. Johnson will be installing a new offense, but is stuck with the talent left from Chan Gailey. Under Johnson, Navy went to five straight bowl games, but it looks as if his personal run will end this year…or will it.

As Adam and I talked about in the last episode of the In The Bleachers Podcast, we both think that BYU has a chance to crash the BCS Bowl party this year. The Mountain West Conference Connection has found some predictions that has said that BYU or Utah could end up in the top 5. BYU with their schedule and number of returning starters could finish in the top 5 after winning every game this year, but I think Utah has a little shot of finishing in the top 25, but will not finish in the top 5.

JayPa’s bocce outfit

USC is quickly piling up the blue chip recruits once again this year, and with the ongoing Reggie Bush investigation, there are plenty of rumors of possible violations by the Trojans. Over at the Barking Carnival TaylorTRoom looks at the history of college football recruiting cheating which he breaks into four parts.

Recruiting and Happy Valley are not mixing right now. If you are like me and a member of BWI’s Lions’ Den, you probably have noticed that there have been a lot of bickering and fighting over losing recruits to Rutgers and Pitt in the past few weeks. There is one person that is still the #1 lightning rod for the fans to pick on, Jay Paterno. Jay has been spending a lot of time blogging for Presidential hopeful Barack Obama, and word has gotten out that he played in a celebrity bocce tournament. Maybe if the younger Paterno spent more time on the recruiting trail or developing quarterbacks than playing with balls, he wouldn’t get such grief.

Kate doesn’t need coffee to make her hot

July also brings out my favorite…the preseason football polls. I have no problem with people voicing their opinions on who they think are the top 25 teams, but there should be no “official” polls till after the 3rd or 4th week of the season. On the Bleacher Report John Lynch takes a stab at his Top 25 preseason poll. As you can tell by some of the comments, they are not too happy who he has in it. My favorite argument is how certain fans always think their team(s) is overlooked or disrespected. Calm down people, let them play a game first before you flip out.

It has been a rainy end of June here in Pittsburgh, but it is nothing compared to what is going on in the Midwest. Head over to Mizzourah and find out how you can help people who have been victimized by the floods.

Finally, the Heisman Pundit is back with an improved, updated, new-looking site. He’s great as always, and I have an email in to him to come on the In The Bleachers Podcast (hopefully Wednesday) to talk about the Heisman hopefuls for 2008. While we are waiting check out his new article asking; Is it really that important to have a quarterback who is an elite NFL-prospect in your program?

Here, we have, at least what I consider to be, the ten most underrated non-conference games of the 2008 season.  So, yeah, most on the list will consist of non-BCS programs.  These games are listed mainly due to a mixture of the meaning of the game, how good it will actually be, and the hype surrounding it.  So let’s begin:

10.  Central Michigan @ Georgia

This is a game that could have larger implications than you might think.  First off, Central Michigan isn’t going to win.  Let’s get that out of the way.  The Chippewas, ever since Butch Jones took control of the program, have forgotten how to play defense.  But, that doesn’t mean the Chips won’t put up a fight.  This has the potential to be Dan LeFevour’s coming out party.

If you’re not familiar with LeFevour, you have obviously shied away from anything Mid-America football-related.  He’s basically, as I’ve said on my blog, a poor man’s Tim Tebow which isn’t necessarily a bad thing.  He’s only one of two quarterbacks to ever throw for 3,000 yards and rush for another 1,000 (Vine Young being the only other).  He has a chance to shine in week two against a nasty Georgia defense.

Realistically speaking, the Chippewas won’t be capable of hanging with the Bulldogs if they can get Knowshon Moreno going.  He’ll probably run through Central’s defense like a hot knife through butter and it might remind fans of that night Between the Hedges that Boise State was supposed to put up a fight.  But the reason this game is important is the fact that LeFevour hasn’t had a huge stage to show off his skills.  He’s played solid games in the MAC championships, had great games in both Motor City Bowls, almost beat Boston College, and got hammered by Michigan in 2006.  That’s about his resume on a national scale.  A competitive showing against the Bulldogs could launch his college career even further.

9.  Ball State @ Indiana

The Cardinals don’t have a rigorous schedule this year and if they can navigate it well enough, this could be a BCS team.  Don’t laugh!  The Cards are lead by budding superstar QB Nate Davis.  He doesn’t have a superfluous amount of help on the other side of the ball, but if you look at the fact that Indiana is the only BCS conference team they play this year, it’s not all that nutty to think that Ball State does have a chance.  Their defense is great at creating turnovers (fourth in the nation) and they get just about everybody back on offense.  They seriously return everybody.  If that’s not enough to get you excited, eight guys come back on a sub-par defense.

As for Indiana, the Hoosiers are in a bit of a daze after the Insight Bowl shellacking that Oklahoma State handed to them.  It was never close.  Last year was an emotional rollercoaster ride for sure, but the players handled it in a professional manner and would have made Coach Hep proud.  This year, Bill Lynch is the man and he’ll have to ward off a team as stingy as Ball State.  It will be crucial to their bowl hopes as well.

8.  Louisville @ Memphis

Why is this game important?  Well, it’s important in a sense that Steve Kragthorpe’s future may be affected by the outcome of this game.  These two former C-USA rivals will meet again at the Liberty Bowl.  The last time Louisville went to the Liberty Bowl (regular season) was 2004 when Stefan LeFlors and Danny Wimprime slugged out a 56-49 final score in which the Cardinals prevailed.

What’s worse is that Memphis should remain pretty powerful on offense.  The defense returns plenty of guys that should only get better with more experience.  If Louisville pulls off another Middle Tennessee defensive performance, that might send a signal to the administration that the team has quite on Steve Kragthorpe and I wouldn’t be shocked at all to see him fired at the end of this year.  Of course that’s any game that can happen in.  Louisville has much tougher opponents on the schedule than Memphis, but another awful defensive game against a non-BCS foe would just be another hit this program doesn’t have to take.  The only reason I choose this game as being underrated is the fact that the recipes are there for disaster.

7.  Troy @ Ohio State

Appalachian State:  Part Deux.  If Buckeye fans are worried about this game, they would be right to harbor those particular emotions.  Troy is a dangerous team.  If we point to Exhibit A, we show Troy stunning Missouri.  Exhibit B shows Troy blasting Oklahoma State.  The problem?  Well, those two games were played at Movie Gallery Stadium and this is in the Horseshoe.  Well, Troy has done fine on the road in the past against LSU, Florida, Georgia, Georgia Tech, and Florida State.

They aren’t going to win though.  Mainly because of the losses on the offensive side of the ball.  Kenny Catthouse, Gary Banks, and Omar Haugabook are all missing and that presents a problem.  The defense isn’t experienced enough to pull off an upset of this magnitude.  But I’d watch for the Trojans to really compete with the Buckeyes and make it a game.

6.  SMU @ Navy

This game is interesting on so many levels.  First off, you can’t get two more diametrically opposed offenses on a football field than the Run n’ Shoot and the triple option flexbone.  It can’t be done.  And we sorta saw this with North Texas and Navy last year, but the whole June Jones thing brings another element to this ballgame.

We all saw what Jones did with Hawaii.  The Warriors couldn’t even beat the lowliest of the low opponents but the instant Jones got there, they were competitive.  He won a WAC title in his first year, one of the most stunning turnarounds in college football history.  Now, an SMU team that flat out stunk will be turning to him for guidance to the postseason and it’s a real possibility.  Navy on the other hand will be without Paul Johnson and that brings Ken Niumatalolo into the picture.  The rookie head coach will try to keep the momentum that Johnson gained during his stay going.  This game is so important to both schools and their aspirations.

5.  Florida Atlantic @ Michigan State

If there’s any moment for Howard Schnellenberger to get his biggest win with the program that he’s managed from the get-go, this is it.  Michigan State in East Lansing will be no easy task, but Rusty Smith and the Owl offense are up to it.

FAU not only should be the best team in Sun Belt history, they should be able to compete with some BCS schools.  We saw how Minnesota was defeated by Florida Atlantic and how USF was pushed to the absolute brink.  This game will be a lot tougher because it will be away from the friendly confines of Boca Raton.  Mark Dantonio preaches tough defense and that just happens to be Florida Atlantic’s forte.   Anyway, if there’s a moment for the Sun Belt to really gain some national commendation, it could come in the form of an almost brand new program knocking off a mainstay in the Big 10.  Don’t count the scrappy Owls out of it.

4.  BYU @ Washington

At least for non-BCS teams, this non-conference game could have the most impact on the entire Bowl Championship Series.  Brigham Young figures to have everything in place for a run towards the coveted BCS slot that Utah, Boise State, and Hawaii have played in before.  But Washington is no pushover.

We saw what happened when Boise State traveled to the Huskies home field.  Personally, I thought the Broncos were the better of two teams but the start they got off to threw everything else off.  BYU might be susceptible to that.  I’ve long said that there would be so many more upsets if non-BCS schools got opportunities to host, but this game does not fit that description.

Jake Locker was borderline potent at different times in the season and should come into 2008 at full strength.  I actually like Washington’s defense coming into this year.  BYU’s strength is also on that side of the ball, so those may equal each other out.  Anyway, a tough road game against a BCS conference foe could be the make-or-break game for the Cougars’ BCS designs.

3.  USF @ UCF

UCF has a tuneup game against South Carolina State to start, but the season kicks off with a bang in week two against in-state rival USF.  The Bulls have already risen to prominence in the state with Jim Leavitt creating the program into a Big East conference contender.  Central Florida on the other hand is still trying to become one of the big boys and that’s even more difficult now that Florida Atlantic is surging.

This game has a load of importance for both schools.  For USF, another win against UCF would assert their dominance in the series and a win for UCF would mean the Golden Knights are capable of taking the next step in their quest to become one of Florida’s state powers.

The only problem here is that UCF is short a QB with experience and Kevin Smith.  Smith was one of the better backs in the entire nation and he was basically George O’Leary’s offense.  Even so, they are one of the better teams in C-USA and the fact that they got drilled last year against the Bulls should only add fuel to the fire.  Hopefully, a change of scenery will allow for a more competitive game.  Hey, we saw what happened to Texas, right?

2.  North Texas @ Rice

Here’s a game I’d pay the price of admission for.  I was hoping for a New Mexico State/North Texas game earlier this year when both teams had an opening on the slate, but most fans of high-octane passing attacks will settle for this.

Neither of these two teams are that great right now.  North Texas struggled to stop anybody and had the worst defense in the nation by far, I don’t care what the stats say regarding total defense.  Okay, maybe not.  Perhaps it was Rice with the worst defense in the nation.  Either way, it doesn’t matter because these omnipotent passers of potency (Chase Clement and Giovanni Vizza/Riley Dodge) should have their way with two pass defenses that don’t even have a prayer.  North Texas ranked 18th in passing offense and lit up multiple Sun Belt teams.  Rice’s was actually better statistically (15th) even though the Mean Green passing game may have gotten more publicity.

Basically, if you like passing and points, this game may shatter the records.  If you thought the 74-62 scoring fest of Navy and North Texas was fun (to at least read about, tough to watch it), this game could be even better.

1.  Tulsa @ Arkansas

This game would be a lot of fun to watch, wouldn’t it?  The much-awaited return of Gus Malzahn.  After getting ousted from Arkansas after a dismal passing attack led by Mitch Mustain and/or Casey Dick, the former Razorback offensive coordinator returns to Fayetteville with his ideal offense developed at Tulsa.  The Golden Hurricane might rely on Jacob Bower without Paul Smith, but there should be no halt in progress for the Tulsa offense.

Arkansas is another story.  They’ll be without the head coach at the time, Houston Nutt.  Bobby Petrino had a much-maligned exit from the NFL when he returned, basically without saying goodbye, to the college game.  Petrino’s team doesn’t have a whole lot going for them as of right now besides the fact that Ryan Mallett is waiting in the wings.

This game could be one of the most entertaining all year and it certainly has the storylines and potential drama to back up that prognostication.  These reasons make the Tulsa/Arkansas game the most underrated non-conference game of 2008.

Be sure to check out my blog, Saturday Sound Offs-The Blog for the College Football Junkie.

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.

As of now Talkshoe will be our temporary home, because it looks as if we keep doing this live podcast we will move over to Blog Talk Radio. In The Bleachers is going to be added to their All Access Football Team in the near future.

If you can’t make the live podcast, don’t worry. I will still post the file on the site and all of your feedburner and iTunes subscriptions will still get the In The Bleachers Podcast. By doing the show live, we hope to get some listener interaction via the chat room or even if you want to call in.

Tonight’s topic will have us talking about the Non-BCS Conferences and some FCS (Division 1-aa) talk. It will also debut a segment called the Bologna Chopshop. My friend and loyal listener Jeff Brancolini will call in during the show to give us some random facts about the topic at hand each week. If I were you I wouldn’t miss it.

In The Bleachers Live Podcast Link

When: 9:05 EST
Phone Number to Call In: (724) 444-7444
Talkcast ID: 81065

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.

[Part 1] [Part 2] [Part 3]

#1: Cal Poly at San Diego State (August 28^th)

Chuck Long has had a tough time getting San Diego State going in his two years here and despite having a fairly veteran offense in 2007 the Aztecs still stumbled their way to a 4-8 record. The Aztecs finished 115^th out of 119 FBS teams in total defense last season, allowing a staggering 498 yards per contest, including a “just shoot us now” 241 yards per game on the ground. Offensively San Diego State has quite a bit of retooling to do as they lose eight players off of last year’s offense including NFL bound quarterback Kevin O’Connell and wide receivers Brett Swain and Chaz Schilens. Even more pressing however may be the questions at offensive line, as the Aztecs return zero experience at the tackle position and only two starters on the offensive line. This is not a good storyboard for a team which averaged “only” 25 points per game on offense last year while benefiting from a +6 turnover margin. I use the word “only” because San Diego State will need to score points in order to even be competitive in the MWC. Considering how many teams need 2-3 games to establish an identity on offense it certainly seems more than conceivable that San Diego State would come sluggish in their opener with Cal Poly.

Cal Poly on the other hand is coming off of a successful 7-4 campaign which saw the Mustangs finish 24^th in the final Sports Network FCS media poll. Coach Rich Ellerson’s bunch led the nation in total offense during the regular season last year, falling just short of the 500 yard per game mark. They posted impressive wins over UC Davis (63-28), Idaho State (48-28) and Weber State (47-19) in 2007, while losing close matchups to WAC member Idaho (20-13) and North Dakota State (31-28.) The Mustangs return ten starters from their record setting offense in 2008, with the lone graduation loss being offensive lineman Daniel Bradley. Defensively they return seven starters, and while they weren’t lights out last year Cal Poly did have a dominating defense in 2006.

I like Cal Poly in this matchup for a number of reasons, not the least of which is their recent success against FBS programs as well as their established offensive dominance. Cal Poly actually beat San Diego State 16-14 in 2006 and would have beaten Idaho last year had it not been for seven fumbles which gave the Vandals a decided edge in the turnover department. While San Diego State does bring back eight starters on the defensive side of the ball I really question whether or not they’ll be improved enough in the first week of 2008 to stop Jonathan Dally and the Mustang offense. Keep in mind Cal Poly runs a triple option offense not totally dissimilar to what Air Force runs, and that the Falcons totaled more than 650 offensive yards (!!!) against San Diego State last season. Even with a comparatively average defense by FCS standards Cal Poly remains much more experienced than San Diego State’s offense, which will likely struggle controlling the ball as they break in a new quarterback, two new starting receivers, and an overhauled offensive line. It’s a good thing they don’t put lines out on inter-subdivision games because if they did I’d put money down on Cal Poly, which is exactly why this is my most likely FCS over FBS upset in 2008.

#4: Richmond at Virginia (September 6^th)

Al Groh’s Cavaliers were one of the better stories in college football last year, spending much of the 2007 season in the ACC title hunt while finishing the year with a 9-4 record. Their success was deceiving however, as Virginia pulled out four net close wins (wins of a touchdown or less) including one point wins over Wake Forest, Maryland, and Connecticut to go along with a two point win over always powerful Middle Tennessee State.  Virginia figured to be rebuilding in 2008 with the loss of all everything defensive end Chris Long (who, to put it bluntly, won several games basically by himself for Virginia last year), but further and unexpected losses on both sides of the ball this off-season have left Groh’s squad desperately inexperienced. Aside from having to break in a new quarterback in 2008, Virginia must replace three offensive linemen and all three defensive linemen, including rising star Jeffery Fitzgerald, who left the team abruptly this spring. 

Richmond, meanwhile, is fresh off an 11-3 season in the ultra-competitive Colonial Athletic Conference in which the Spiders made it all the way to the National semi-final game where they lost to Appalachian State. Richmond returns eight starters on both sides of the football and gets two more back in OL Tim Silver and DE Sherman Logan, both of whom sat out much of 2007 due to injury. They do lose All-American running back Tim Hightower and have a new Head Coach at the helm with Mike London, but the Spiders are no strangers to playing quality competition as their six wins against FCS Top 25 teams were the most of any team in the country last year. Rising senior Josh Vaughan ran for more than 700 yards and nine touchdowns last season, and should fill in nicely for Hightower while duel-threat quarterback Eric Ward continues his development.

After what figures to be a crushing loss to USC in week one Virginia will still be searching for an offensive identity when they return to Charlottesville on September 6^th, while their promising but young defensive line will likely be going through some growing pains. I like Richmond’s rushing attack (12^th nationally in the FCS last year) to shore up Virginia’s front seven, and for the Richmond defense to give Virginia’s already fairly pedestrian offense some problems. In a close game like this matchups matter but despite the coaching matchup of a veteran like Groh and a rookie like London, I give Richmond a great chance of pulling the upset here.

#3 North Dakota State at Wyoming (September 13^th)

After being one of about seventeen people on the East Coast to watch Wyoming dismantle Virginia to begin the 2007 season I was thoroughly convinced on Joe Glenn’s ability to lead the Pokes to a winning season, and after a 4-1 start my suspicions seemed to be confirmed. Yet it was not to be, as Wyoming went on the drop six of their last seven including and embarrassing 50-0 crushing at the hands of Utah. The prospect of watching his team bludgeoned on the field offended Glenn so much that he flipped the bird to Utah head coach Kyle Wittingham during the contest, an act which this blogger eagerly applauded. Still, Wyoming’s downfall in 2007 went largely unnoticed, as the Pokes struggled offensively down the stretch en route to being out-gained by more than 80 yards per game in conference play. Quarterback Karstan Sween was woefully inconsistent, tossing 17 picks to just 12 touchdowns, and the team sputtered under a -12 turnover margin. They do get 14 starters back in 2007 including an explosive running back tandem in Devin Moore and Wynel Seldon, as well as an offensive line which returns its entire two-deep. Defensively Wyoming figures to be strong once again in 2007, although the Pokes will have to deal with the loss of two top flight corners in Michael Medina and Julius Stinson. With so much attention focused on North Dakota State’s running game, Wyoming’s inexperienced cornerbacks could struggle against the experienced and talented NDST receiving corps.

 North Dakota State was in a transition state from Division II to the FCS last year and the program wasn’t even eligible for the playoffs. That was probably a good thing for numerous teams throughout the FCS, as the Bison only cruised their way to ten consecutive wins before losing a close game to rival South Dakota State to finish out the year. While all the team’s featured in our countdown are coming off of winning seasons, what separates North Dakota State from virtually every other FCS program in the country was the team’s ability to win two games against FBS competition in 2007, a feat which I believe was never before accomplished since the classifications were established (if I’m wrong on this one, let me know.) North Dakota State’s 27-21 win over Minnesota was well documented by the world wide leader, but an equally, if not even more impressive win came in week three when the Bison shellacked bowl bound Central Michigan 44-14, in the process holding the potent Chippewas offense to 150 yards and sixteen points below their yearly average. North Dakota State spent six weeks as the top ranked FCS team in 2007, and while they lose quarterback Steve Walker to graduation they do return their top skill position players, including one of the best running backs in the FCS in Tyler Roehl (1431 yards, 21 TD last year.) A solid receiving corps returns all the leading pass catchers from last season, including All-American candidate Kole Heckendorf. Defensively they will be adjusting to life after linebacker Joe Mays, but there is a veteran enough presence to keep the team in games and to let the offense go to work. 

This is the one all the FCS fans have circled. It’s not that Wyoming is a bad team, it’s just that North Dakota State looked so dominant in wins over bowl-bound Central Michigan and Big Ten member Minnesota last season that they’ve built a reputation of being able to beat FBS teams. While this could work against them against Wyoming (especially considering Glenn’s background as a NAIA, D-II, and FCS coach) it remains to be seen whether Karstan Sween has furthered his development enough to overcome the inconsistency and turnovers which stalled Wyoming’s offense last season (-12 in 2007.) North Dakota State is a veteran team with senior leadership, and considering the talent level even a solid defense like Wyoming’s could struggle if kept on the field too long. North Dakota State’s potent offense and penchant for upsets make this my third most likely FCS upset of 2008, especially considering continued questions of the productivity of Wyoming’s offense.

#2 New Hampshire at Army (September 6^th)

It’s been a long and frankly depressing slide into mediocrity for the Cadets of West Point, as the once proud team that was producing National Championships and Heisman trophy winners some 60 years ago now struggles to post wins over lower tier MAC teams. Head coach Stan Brock hopes to begin a turnaround similar to the run engineered at Navy under Paul Johnson six years ago, making the transition to an option offense while downgrading the schedule, a move which should actually have Army looking up. Nevertheless the Black Knights are likely to have a very difficult time in 2007, as they’ll have only four starters back on offense while attempting to make the switch to the wishbone. The fact that last year’s starting quarterback Carson William’s is not exactly the most fleet-o-foot individual around compounds Army’s offensive issues going into the year, putting the Black Knights in a potentially no-win situation of making the decision to go with the ill-adapted Williams or a true freshmen in Paul McIntosh. In either case, Army will have to rely on solid fundamentals and scheme work to overcome a lack of playmakers on offense, a point exceptionally tough to accomplish in the first year of a new system (for comparisons sake, see Paul Johnson’s 2-10 season at Navy in ’02.) Defensively Army has been o.k. the past few years, but the loss of seven starters from a unit which allowed over 30 points per game in 2007 will likely drop them to the bottom of the FBS defensive rankings. What concerns me the most is the secondary, which will break in four new starters in 2007 against what was the FCS’ 13^th ranked passing offense and 4^th ranked passing efficiency offense last season.

New Hampshire isn’t an overwhelming FCS power like Appalachian State or Montana, but they’ve been a perennial winner under headman Sean McDonnell (60-47 in nine years of work) and more importantly have had a knack for beating FBS teams. New Hampshire has actually won their last three games against FBS opponents, with the latest being a win over Marshall 48-35 in 2007. New Hampshire runs a spread style passing attack that is more than capable of exposing Army’s defensive limitations, including a revamped Army secondary which must break in four new starters. While Ricky Santos does leave for the CFL after a record setting career at UNH the offense figures to still be potent, with Mississippi State transfer Kyle Aufrey coming in to compete for the starting job. UNH did struggle defensively last year but seven returning starters should help shore up the defense. The good news for New Hampshire is that they see an option offense every year with Rhode Island, so adjusting to the presumed Army wishbone look shouldn’t be too radical of a defensive gameplane.

Army has struggled with CAA teams in the recent past, with the Black Knights squeaking by UMass by a touchdown in 2005 and just getting by a mediocre Rhode Island team in overtime last season. Unlike those two teams New Hampshire has the resume of knocking off FBS teams on a regular basis and has the experience on offense to move the ball against Army even with a new quarterback. New Hampshire is arguably a better team than Army talent wise and with the Black Knights undergoing a transformation in offensive schemes it’s tough to see Army having that much success against a UNH defense which returns seven starters. As an Army fan I hate to go against the Cadets like this but we could see a lot of balls on the ground for Army, something which will cost the Black Knights dearly against a perennially explosive UNH offense.

Check back tommorow for my most likely FCS over FBS upset of 2008!

With a new round of television negations due, specifically the current Bowl Championship Series deal with Fox that expires after the 2010 title game, any chance to pull the storied Irish program into another conference, such as the Big Ten or Big East, becomes much more difficult as any conference looking to make that deal would have to deal with NBC as well. Chances are if the Big Ten expands to twelve, it would not be the Irish as the conference has a large deal in place with ABC/ESPN. Conferences with twelve teams are allowed to host conference title games, bringing in millions of dollars to the SEC, Big 12, and the ACC.

NBC and Notre Dame have been partners for all Irish home games since 1991, currently paying the school $9 million a year for the seven game package.