Monday Morning Roundup - 10/19/09

"Confidence is a realization that God has given me abilities and created me to fill a unique role that no one else is called to fill. Borne in humility, confidence is a recognition that life is not about me but about using the gifts and abilities I have been blessed with to their fullest."

College Football Saturday

Sorry Charlie, but it’s time to go: If Saturday’s loss to USC proved anything, it was that Notre Dame head coach Charlie Weis will likely and should be fired at the end of the season. With an 0-5 career record against the Trojans, Weis has also accumulated a 1-11 record against ranked teams since he started with

the Irish back in 2005. Like I’ve mentioned, Notre Dame’s best option would be to fire Weis and offer to Cincinnati head coach Brian Kelly whatever he wants. Kelly has taken two bottom of the food chain programs and turned them into legitimate teams, and has proved that he has what it takes to coach against the best teams in the nation. There is no doubt in my mind that Weis’ time is up. He’s done nothing this year to suggest that he deserves another year in South Bend. The one interesting thing that could come from a Weis firing is whether or not quarterback Jimmy Clausen would decide to return to school for his senior season if there is a new head coach. Since Clausen has started with the Irish, Clausen and Weis have been connected at the hip and it seems as Weis’ stock goes up or down, so does Clausen’s, and vice-versa. With Brady Quinn struggling badly in the NFL and with Clausen coming from the same college system that Quinn played in at Notre Dame, one question is whether scouts and executives will downgrade Clausen considering he’s coming from the same tutelage as Quinn came from? While Quinn landed in one of the worst situations possible (Cleveland), it still has to worry some coaches around the league that Clausen could be another version of Quinn. Either way, there is a good chance that a new era of Notre Dame football will begin next season.

For the Texas Longhorns, there is absolutely no way that this team is the third-best team in the country. Colt McCoy’s Heisman stock has virtually evaporated and his status as one of the top quarterbacks in the 2010 draft also doesn’t look as bright as it did a week ago. Here’s a question: Would a one-loss Alabama or Florida team be more worthy of a National Championship bid than a one-loss Texas or undefeated Texas team? When you look at the schedules, the SEC is un-comparable to the Big 12. The Longhorns’ only games against ranked teams are matchups against Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, and Kansas, who lost on Saturday to Colorado. However, when you take a look at Alabama’s schedule, their ranked games are against Virginia Tech, Ole Miss, South Carolina, and LSU; not including a game against Florida in the SEC Championship game. Now, if the SEC Championship Game is close enough, wouldn’t a rematch between the top two teams in the country be a better game than a game between the winner and an overrated Longhorns club?

There are a couple of things that I took away from the two big SEC games on Saturday, with Florida beating Arkansas and Alabama beating South Carolina: Alabama could very easily be the best team in the

country and Florida isn’t quite as good as we thought they were. The Gators struggled to beat an overrated

LSU team last week, and while it was a night game in Baton Rouge, Florida didn’t do anything that night to suggest that they are the best team in the country. They then struggled Saturday to beat a very underrated Arkansas squad and could have very easily lost if Alex Tejada had made the two field goals that he’d missed. Now, from Alabama’s perspective, the Crimson Tide cannot be stopped by anyone. Their running game and defense, with a style of play that reminds me of last year’s Baltimore Ravens, are both among the best in the nation, and that doesn’t even include Julio Jones, the best receiver in the country, and up-and-coming quarterback Greg McElroy. Tide running back Mark Ingram, who rushed for 246 yards and one touchdown on 24 carries, has emerged as one of the top running backs in the country and could carry the Tide on his shoulders to the National Championship game. This year’s SEC Championship Game, assuming it’s between Florida and Alabama, figures to be one of the top conference championship games that we’ll have seen in quite awhile.

This year’s Heisman race may be one of the bigger duds that we’ve seen in the past few years. With Cal’s struggles, Jahvid Best isn’t quite looking as good as he did at the beginning of the year; Sam Bradford doesn’t have a chance with his injury and Oklahoma’s three losses, and Colt McCoy doesn’t look very promising for the award after his poor performance against the Sooners on Saturday. My two current favorites: Tim Tebow and Mark Ingram. Tebow is an obvious choice, but Ingram may be the dark horse that has emerged from nowhere to give Tebow a run for his money. Ingram has rushed for 905 yards and eight touchdowns on 135 carries for a 6.7-yards per carry average. Ingram’s emotion and intense play has been contagious as Alabama’s offense is firing on all cylinders.

Georgia Tech’s win over Virginia Tech may be one of the quieter upsets that we’ve seen so far this year. This was a must-win game if the Hokies wanted to have a chance to reach the National Championship game. With two losses now, a BCS Bowl is the best that Virginia Tech can hope for; however, that isn’t a gimme anymore with Georgia Tech only having lost one game this year. With a very favorable schedule the rest of the way, I could see the Yellow Jackets run the table and end up winning the ACC.

The Iowa Hawkeyes may be the quietest 7-0 team in the country. With their victory over the Wisconsin Badgers on Saturday, Iowa has to be the current favorite to win the Big Ten and go to the Rose Bowl, especially after Ohio State’s loss at Purdue. Outside of their game at the Buckeyes, which wouldn’t matter if they lost from a standings and record standpoint, the Hawkeyes have games against Michigan State, Indiana, Northwestern, and Minnesota. If Iowa can beat Ohio State in the Columbus, in addition to beating Penn State in Happy Valley, then Iowa would have to be considered a dark horse for a bid to the National Championship game.

NFL Sunday

The New Orleans Saints have officially established themselves as the best team in the NFL. On the shoulders of Drew Brees and the Saints powerful aerial attack, New Orleans won handily on Sunday over a New York Giants team that many considered to be the top team in the NFL. While the Saints offense is what most people will talk about, New Orleans’ defense is what has turned this team into an elite-level squad. New arrival Darren Sharper is having one of the best years of his career and the team’s front seven continues to shut down their opponents running game. Defensive coordinator Gregg Williams was worth every penny that both the front office and head coach Sean Payton paid him. In the offseason Payton offered to reduce his salary in order to pay more to Williams to bring him in; it’d be an understatement to say that the move paid off. The Saints running game, behind the three-headed monster of Pierre Thomas, Reggie Bush, and Mike Bell, New Orleans offense is more balanced than they’ve been in the four years since Payton arrived to coach the team. With an offense that no one can stop and a defense that all of a sudden ranks among the league’s best, the Saints now have to be the favorites to make it to the Super Bowl.

As if Tom Brady hadn’t already made his mark on the NFL record books, he continued to shine on Sunday as the Patriots dismantled the Tennessee Titans 59-0. Throwing for 380 yards and six touchdowns, Brady set the record for most touchdowns in one quarter when he threw five in the second quarter on Sunday. It’s clear that the New England Patriots are back after what seemed like a sluggish start to the season. With a game next week against Tampa Bay followed by a bye, the Patriots should be set to go for the second half of the year. With a rejuvenated Tom Brady and an offense that is on fire, the Patriots figure to once again be one of the teams to be reckoned with in the AFC.

The Minnesota Vikings might have more lives than any other team in football. Their record stands at 6-0 despite playing games against Cleveland, Detroit, and St. Louis, the three worst teams in the NFL. The

Vikings have last-second wins against San Francisco and now yesterday against Baltimore. The Vikings

have an impressive team, there’s no doubt about it, but until they are able to close out a game without last second luck against one of the top teams in the NFL, I’m still not going to buy into them. In both of their games against Cleveland and Detroit, Minnesota headed into halftime losing the game; they struggled almost the entire game to beat San Francisco and they almost lost to Baltimore in a last-second field goal on Sunday. This team could very easily be 4-2. They played great against the Green Bay Packers, but even in that game they let the Packers stay in the game right until the end, and they played as well as they did against Green Bay because of the emotion from the Brett Favre drama. We knew coming into the season that the Vikings had one of the easiest schedules in the league, and that’s even more apparent now. Their next two games, at Pittsburgh and at Green Bay, will be stiff challenges, but even those two teams aren’t among the league’s elite. I could very easily see the Vikings heading into the playoffs with a great record (12-4, 13-3, etc.), but losing earlier than expected to a team that is better than anyone that they played during the regular season. For the Vikings, that certainly wouldn’t be the first time that’s happened before.

I’m not sure which team to be more unimpressed with from yesterday’s game between the Eagles and Raiders. Oakland’s defense suffocated the Eagles offense for the majority of the game and JaMarcus Russell didn’t turn the ball over enough times for Philadelphia to take advantage of Oakland’s awful offense. Tight end Zach Miller torched the Eagles defense for 139 yards and one touchdown on six catches in a very impressive performance. The Eagles are back to the drawing board with their next six games coming against Washington, New York Giants, Dallas, San Diego, and Chicago. That doesn’t include another game with New York and matchups against Atlanta and Dallas. Oakland will go on with their losing season, but Philadelphia’s loss to the Raiders could have a big impact on the rest of their season.

Only in the NFL do we see one team who impresses us one week and let us down in another. That’s exactly what the Cincinnati Bengals are. After upsetting the Baltimore Ravens last week and improving to 4-1 on the year, the Bengals came into their game yesterday with the Houston Texans and dropped the ball. The Texans are a very talented team, but for a Bengals team that has shown it is capable of taking down the NFL’s elite, losing yesterday is a huge blow to the Bengals. For a team who is trying to make the playoffs for the first time since 2005, and whose head coach entered the year on the hot seat, Sunday’s game against the Texans is the type of game that the Bengals must win.

NFL Draft Implications

I’m not sure if there has ever been as many mediocre and poor teams in the NFL as there are right now. You could argue that as many as five or six teams could be jockeying for the number one pick, with several others in position to have high picks next April. Among those who are the current favorites to land the first pick in the draft are St. Louis, Tennessee, Tampa Bay, Cleveland, and Kansas City. With Detroit, Washington, Oakland, Seattle, and Jacksonville all having a chance to also have a high pick, it’s definitely going to be a race to the finish to see who ends up where in the draft order.

Notes:

• The 2010 draft has a chance to be a very good one for one reason: the labor negotiations, which don’t appear to be going well, could end up with a rookie salary scale once all is said and done. Players who want to get as much money as they can are going to want to enter the draft before the rookie pay scale is put into place. For juniors and redshirt sophomores who are on the fence as to whether to leave, this could be one of the deciding factors in their decision.
• There are several junior defensive ends who could enter the draft and be high picks in 2010. Players such as Carlos Dunlap of Florida, Everson Griffen of USC, Derrick Morgan of Georgia Tech, Greg Romeus of Pitt, Cameron Heyward of Ohio State, and Jeremy Beal of Oklahoma all will have a decision to make after this season, and you could make an argument that each player could be taken as high as the second round, if not higher.
• Clemson defensive end Ricky Sapp might be one of the most overrated prospects in the nation right now. Many around the country are saying that Sapp is a sure-first round pick thanks to his talent and excellent upside; however, while he may be talented, his production hasn’t matched what some say his talent level is. With only three sacks this year, and just two sacks last season, Sapp has the makings of the next Vernon Gholston. Also, name the last defensive player from Clemson who has done anything with his career in the NFL? Gaines Adams hasn’t lived up to his status a former No. 4 overall pick, and Tye Hill was a large bust for the St. Louis Rams. For any team that is thinking seriously about taking Sapp, I’d be cautious about the history not being on his side.

Here is a list of players that impressed me this weekend:

O’Brien Schofield DE Wisconsin – If you haven’t heard of O’Brien Schofield yet, you better get on the

bandwagon now. With 16.5 tackles for loss and 6.5 sacks so far this season, Schofield has literally burst onto the national scene and has raised his draft stock as much as anyone in college football. With one of the best motors in the country and an intense style of play that is assure to attract NFL scouts, Schofield has a chance to rise of draft boards as we get closer to the draft. A 6-3, 250 lb defensive end, Schofield could likely move to outside linebacker in the 3-4. He’s a bit small to be a 4-3 end, but he could likely play end as a pass rush specialist. This kid is a guy to keep an eye on as the season continues; his stock is on fire right now.

Trent Williams OT Oklahoma – Trent Williams had an excellent day on Saturday against the Texas Longhorns. At times, Williams was matched up with Texas defensive end Sergio Kindle and did a great job of defending Kindle throughout the day. Williams is running neck and neck with Oklahoma State left tackle Russell Okung to be the first offensive lineman selected in the first round. If he continues to play the way that he did on Saturday, then it should be an easy decision to make come April.

Bryan Bulaga OT Iowa – Speaking of elite offensive tackle prospects, Hawkeyes’ tackle Bryan Bulaga has done a great job since returning from injury. Bulaga is a strong lineman who may not be quite on the same level as former Big Ten tackles Jake Long and Joe Thomas, but he surely isn’t that far away. Bulaga has the size and talent to be a franchise offensive lineman at the next level and he could definitely be in the conversation with both Williams and Okung as a future Top 10 pick.

Anthony McCoy TE USC – Anthony McCoy was a major reason why USC was able to pull out their win over Notre Dame. McCoy made several large catches in the game including one that for 60 yards down to the Notre Dame four yard line. McCoy finished the game with 153 yards on five catches. A complete tight end who is a reliable receiver and good blocking tight end, McCoy has elevated his draft stock and could end up being drafted as high as the second or third round.