Here are the signing day classes for the Sun Belt . Among the highlights: Western Kentucky: The Hilltoppers inked eight three-star athletes, including tight end Mitchell Henry and athlete Quartterrio Morgan . The class also does not include defensive back Jonathan Dowling of Bradenton, Fla., who recently transferred to Western Kentucky and is currently enrolled in classes. He was a Florida signee last year. Arkansas State: In his first year as head coach, Hugh Freeze signed 10 junior college transfers hoping they would be able to help the program immediately. Among the 10: defensive back Don Jones , tight end Anthony Kincy , offensive lineman James Williams and defensive lineman Ronnell Wright . North Texas : The Mean Green signed 17 — 12 came on defense, where they filled a major need. Athlete Freddie Warner could be considered the best of the class. FIU : The Panthers signed four three-star players, including athlete Corey Tindal of Ft. Lauderdale.
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Signing Day: Sun Belt
Filed under Football by on Feb 2nd, 2011. Comment. 
My picks in Week 8 were back to being decent, and I got one of my two upset specials right. Navy beat Notre Dame to help me get to 7-3, but did anyone expect the Midshipmen to win that decisively? Not I said the cat. With a 50-34 overall record, I am ready for what Week 9 has to bring. I think. On to the picks! No. 4 TCU 41, UNLV 3. The Horned Frogs keep on rolling in their first road game since Oct. 2 against Colorado State. Keep in mind they won that game 27-0 after some struggles on offense. Andy Dalton is going to have to play well on the road for TCU to have any shot at staying undefeated. TCU has outscored its Mountain West opponents 141-10. No. 8 Utah 31, Air Force 13. This game is usually really tight, but not this year. After a good first quarter, Air Force struggled to move the ball against TCU last week and had its lowest rushing output of the season. Utah has one of the more unheralded defenses in the nation, and ranks in the Top 10 in the nation in scoring D, total D and rush D. No. 24 Nevada 35, Utah State 13. The Wolf Pack return to the field after a week off, hoping to erase the sting of their first loss of the season. Colin Kaepernick had four turnovers in that loss to Hawaii, and is going to have to be mistake-free for Nevada to have a shot at winning the rest of its games. Coach Chris Ault said his team had physical practices leading up to this game, and is eager to see how it responds. Utah State has scored 13 points in its past two games. UCF 27, East Carolina 24. The Pirates own this series, having won four straight and eight of nine. But UCF gets the edge here because it’s at home and has the best defense in Conference USA. The Knights haven’t faced an offense quite as potent as this one, but the defensive line is playing outstanding and should be able to pressure Dominique Davis into making mistakes. Hawaii 45, Idaho 17. Hawaii is playing lights out football, and should clinch a bowl berth into the Hawaii Bowl with a win over the hard-to-read Vandals, who have alternated wins and losses this season. They won last week, so a loss must be in the stars. The Warriors have scored 40-plus points in four of their past five games, and present a big challenge to Boise State on Nov. 6. UPSET SPECIAL Tulsa 33, Notre Dame 30.
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Non-AQ Picks: Week 9
Filed under Football by on Oct 28th, 2010. Comment.
When Western Kentucky returned home after breaking its 26-game losing streak, a sight usually reserved for national champions awaited them. Folks had gathered at the airport, red Hilltopper towels in hand, and whooped and hollered as the team emerged from the terminal. Players were shocked. Coaches were shocked. The 54-21 victory over Louisiana meant so much to them, but they had no idea what type of impact it would have on their community. “A lot of love is being shown around here,” running back Bobby Rainey said. A lot of love indeed. When the team pulled up to the stadium after the ride from the airport, more fans waited. When coach Willie Taggart went to get his cup of coffee, folks in the store were beaming. As he walked out, he overheard one woman tell another, “He’s the most popular guy in Bowling Green right now.” “I was thinking, ‘Geez, that’s just for one victory,’” Taggart said at his news conference earlier this week. “I can’t imagine what it would be like if we win the Sun Belt conference championship.” Western Kentucky is a proud program that has had success in the past. But it is just in its second year of being a full-time FBS member, and the wins had been excruciatingly slow to come. When Taggart took over his alma mater for this season, he brought a new energy to the team. But he knew he had a lot of hard work in front of him. Western Kentucky plays a tough nonconference schedule, and making the transition to a higher division takes time and patience. But he did have some talent here. Chief among those talented players was Rainey, who ran for more than 5,000 yards in high school in Griffin, Ga. Rainey had been a part of a winning program at his high school, one that went to state championships every year. So it was hard to live through all 26 straight losses. “Never in my life had I been on a team that hasn’t won,” said Rainey, who leads the Sun Belt in rushing with 120 yards per game. “It was very frustrating. I didn’t know what to do really. I tried a lot of different things and it seemed like nothing worked. That’s when I turned to God and told him to give me the strength. “I’m considered a leader on the team and everybody looks to me. I had to keep everyone up, keep pushing, telling guys, ‘We’ll get the victory.’” There were several close calls that nearly ended the streak. In the 2009 finale, the Hilltoppers blew a 20-3 lead late in the third quarter and lost 24-20 to Arkansas State. Two weeks ago, they took a 24-7 lead into the fourth quarter at home against ULM. Western Kentucky allowed 28 unanswered points and lost 35-30. They were so close, and everybody could sense it
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Hilltoppers ‘party like a rock star’
Filed under Football, News by on Oct 27th, 2010. Comment.
Welcome to the Winless Watch, where we take a look at the teams still waiting on that first victory of the year, and their odds of getting it this week. Eastern Michigan ended its 18-game slide with a big win over Ball State, leaving three teams: Western Kentucky (0-6) . Streak: L 26. This week: at Louisiana. Chances: 35 percent. Wow, did the Hilltoppers come close last week. But alas, luck is hardly ever on your side when you lose 26 straight games. They allowed 28 unanswered points in the fourth quarter to lose to ULM 35-30. Chris Masson is playing better for Louisiana. If it doesn’t happen this week, next week could be it for Western Kentucky, with a home game against North Texas. New Mexico (0-6) . Streak: L 7. This week: San Diego State. Chances: 5 percent. The Lobos had a week off to rest and get their act together, but somehow I think they are going to need more than a week to start playing better. An infusion of talent would help, along with a new coaching staff. It’s going to be hard for one of the worst offenses and defenses in the country to stop one of the more balanced teams in the Mountain West. Ronnie Hillman had 191 yards on the ground last week against a decent Air Force defense. Wonder how many he will get this week. Akron (0-7) . Streak: L 7. This week: Western Michigan. Chances: 15 percent. Patrick Nicely continues to struggle, but coach Rob Ianello says he is going to stick with his quarterback
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Winless Watch, Week 8
Filed under Football by on Oct 20th, 2010. Comment.
The memory-wiping service featured in “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind” is offering discounts to all Big East teams should they want to clear this September from their brains. Until then, let’s review what happened in another tough week for the league: Team of the week: Syracuse. Not much to choose from here, and all the Orange did was beat Colgate at home. But the Orange are 3-1 for the first time since 2003, and I don’t see any other Big East teams celebrating milestone victories right about now. Best game: Cincinnati’s 31-29 loss to Oklahoma. It was a game full of big plays and a stirring Bearcats comeback, in a unique atmosphere against a big-time opponent. Plus, it offered signs of what Cincinnati could become under Butch Jones. Biggest play: This is a four-way tie, and it’s all about kicking-game plays not properly executed. D.J. Woods ‘ fumbled punt for Cincinnati proved costly and maybe the turning point, along with a missed PAT that kept the Bearcats from being able to tie the score late with a two-point conversion. West Virginia allowed a punt return for a touchdown and missed two field goals (one of which was blocked) in a 20-14 loss at LSU. Rutgers, normally so good at special teams, had a punt blocked that set up North Carolina’s final field goal in a 17-13 loss. And Pitt’s Cam Saddler fumbled away a punt return just as Pitt cut Miami’s lead to 17-3 and finally appeared to have some momentum. The Panthers completely deflated after that. Never underestimate the kicking game. Best call: Randy Edsall’s decision to lift Zach Frazer for Cody Endres at quarterback in the Buffalo game. The Huskies seemed to gain almost immediate confidence on offense, and Endres led them down the field to several scores in a 31-point second half. Edsall couldn’t really have made the call any sooner since Endres was suspended until last week. But it was the right time to make a change. Big Man on Campus (Offense): Isaiah Pead , RB, Cincinnati. I totally blew it in my helmet stickers this week, giving a nod to Woods instead of Pead. I’d like to blame it on too many Abitas in Baton Rouge, but it was really a case of a bad internet connection in the LSU press box and no TV access. But no excuses. Throw the penalty flag on me. Pead was huge in the second-half comeback, running for 139 of his 169 yards after intermission. Cincinnati is a different team with a healthy Pead able to take pressure off the passing game. Big Man on Campus (Defense): Jerome Junior, S, Connecticut. Junior had a pair of interceptions, including one he returned 27 yards for the Huskies’ first score against Buffalo. Big Man on Campus (Special teams): Terrance Mitchell, South Florida. The true freshman had 94 yards on two punt returns, including a 64-yarder that set up a score against Western Kentucky. Worst hangover: Pittsburgh. Sure, West Virginia, Rutgers and Cincinnati all lost their marquee matchups, too . But the total margin of defeat against LSU, Oklahoma and North Carolina was 12 points, at least giving some hope that each team can get things going. Pitt offered no reason for optimism in a 31-3 home collapse against Miami
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Week 4 review/Week 5 preview
Filed under Football, News by on Sep 27th, 2010. Comment.
Tomorrow means predictions, but you might want to bookmark this post to get ready for this weekend’s games in front of the TV. But just because I’m not doing it doesn’t mean you can’t. Let’s hear your predictions for Week 1 in the comments. Here’s who’s playing who when, where and on what channel this week (all times ET): THURSDAY Northern Illinois at Iowa State (8 p.m., Fox Sports Net): The Cyclones easiest nonconference matchup, Thursday night’s game sets up a nice duel between two great pinballers at running back, Iowa State’s Alexander Robinson (5-foot-9, 191 pounds) and Northern Illinois’ Chad Spann (5-foot-9, 197 pounds), both of whom topped 1,000 yards in 2009. SATURDAY Missouri vs. Illinois in St. Louis (12:30 p.m., Fox Sports Net): Missouri quarterback Blaine Gabbert will be without top running back Derrick Washington , but will have a chance to throw against an Illinois secondary missing two starters. Colorado vs. Colorado State in Denver (2 p.m., The Mtn.): Colorado will try to avoid duplicating last season’s embarrassment in the annual rivalry game, this time with quarterback Tyler Hansen , who’s starting his first nonconference game. UCLA at Kansas State (3:30 p.m., ABC): Wildcats lost the first half of the home-and-home out in Los Angeles last year. It might be different in Manhattan this time around as Bill Snyder kicks off his second year back at Kansas State. No. 5 Texas vs. Rice in Houston (3:30 p.m., ESPN): So what if Rice is the home team in a game in the same city as their campus? This will be a Longhorn-friendly crowd. Not that it will matter. Washington State at Oklahoma State (7 p.m., Fox Sports Net): Cowboys are kicking off against a BCS conference opponent, but the Cougars might be the worst team in any of the big six conferences. Sam Houston State at Baylor (7 p.m., none): Robert Griffin’s return won’t be high profile, but the FCS Bearkats should be a nice warm-up. And hey, their punter is Australian! North Dakota State at Kansas (7 p.m., Fox College Sports): Coach Turner Gill and sophomore quarterback Kale Pick will make their Jayhawk debuts against the FCS Bison, who finished last season 3-8. Western Kentucky at No. 8 Nebraska (7 p.m., pay-per-view): The Huskers will take on the Hilltoppers (and their mascot, Big Red), who enter Memorial Stadium with the nation’s longest losing streak, 20 games. The main attraction is obvious: As the only team in the Big 12 who hasn’t announced a Week 1 starter, which quarterback will take the first snap of a long-awaited 2010?
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Previewing Week 1 in the Big 12
Filed under Football by on Sep 1st, 2010. Comment.
