Alright America, here is a new post that we would like to create this week. Jeremy and I came up with four questions, two each, and we are going to discuss them. In some cases we will disagree and in some we will agree, but these are four topics that seem to be hot in college football right now. So here is our take on these four big stories. Tell us what you think. Comment on our blog our tweet us @kinneybrozcfb on twitter.
1st Down: It is pretty much established that it is Alabama is by far the best team in college football. With The Tide head and shoulders above of everyone else, who is the second best team in college football?
Nick:
I don't really like having to do this, but I have to say Oregon is right now. This is totally contingent on a couple other games this weekend, but for lack of anyone else I have to back Oregon because I moved them up to No. 2 in my poll this week. I know the argument against this team is that they have played no one and they have to leave home to get some respect, but as a fan of a non-AQ team, I think there is only so long you can blame a team for playing a bad schedule. I think this would be very different if Oregon was not just crushing teams. If the Ducks were playing close games against average to bad opponents then I would be more likely not to move them to No. 2, but when you hang 40 in almost every first half this season, I think you diserve to be there. One problem I see with this team, however, is if they get behind and the defense is forced to make some stops, they could be in trouble. That being said I will make my case for this team.
Let's just start by saying Oregon has the best offense in the country. I know it is not No. 1 in every offensive category, but lets look at its offensive stats just for the fun of it. The Ducks are second in scoring offense averaging 52.3 points per game and are only one of two teams in the nation averaging more than 50 points per outing. Leading that scoring offense is the No. 4 ranked rushing attack in the game averaging 317 yards per game. The Ducks are just one of four teams in the country averaging 300-plus rushing yards per game. One stat that has to come up but is not very telling is redzone efficiency, they are No. 26 in the country scoring on 31 of 35 drives that have entered the redzone. This offense creates so many big plays that it is impossible to really take them down becuase of this stat. They are No. 7 in total first downs converting 50 percent. This seems interesting because even a great offense should be a little more effcient creating first downs. The final offensive stat I will throw out is this team has destroyed opponents outscoring them 357-141. Individually, running back Kenjon Barner is running wild with 870 yards and 12 touchdowns this season. He is also averaging 6.6 yards per carry. DeAnthony Thomas is right behind him with 402 yards on the season and six touchdowns, but is averaging more yards per carry at 7.6. These two are a great one-two combo at running back and can keep defenses guessing. At quarterback Marcus Mariota is having a solid season (68.3%, 1347 yards, 16 TDs), but when your running game is that good it is tough it takes a lot of pressure off.
I have heard all season that Chip Kelly's defense is the best he has ever had at Oregon. I am not sure about this because they have never been leaned on to win the Ducks a game, but a couple things make me think this defense is solid. They are top five in redzone defense allowing just 15 scores on 26 opponent drives. Another thing that makes this defense look good is it is very oportunistic with three defensive touchdowns this season. Those three defensive scores came on interceptions, which the Ducks are tied for No. 8 in the country with 10 this season. This team does not blow you away on defense, but it has not had to yet. Like always, the defense of the team is suspect and if they get up against a team that keeps them on the field can they make the big stop? This is yet to be seen, but with some teams that grind like Stanford and Oregon State coming up we will see.
There you have it. There is no doubt this team has the best offense in the country, but can its defense stand up against a grind it out offense that is more physical? We will see soon. For right now Oregon is my No. 2 team and until they lose or Florida knocks off South Carolina, or even Kansas State beats West Virginia they are the second best team in the country.
Jeremy-
Oregon is king of one thing. Hype. It's always hype with the Ducks. No one wins with more flair or gets more style points than the Duckies, from the uni's, to the blow-out victories... Until, they go up against a team that's as fast or faster and bigger and more physical. In '09 it was physicl, fundamentally sound Boise State and Stanford in the regular season and a fast, physical Buckeye team in the Rose Bowl. In 2010 it was Cam Newton, Nick Fariley and a big, fast, nasty Auburn team. Last year they opened the season against LSU and got dismantled, then dropped a big one to USC. Same M.O. Big Ducks in a small pond.
This year, after seven weeks, they've finally played a game outside the Pacific Northwest and really have no win this season that make you go; 'man, that was a good win.' It's the middle of October and I'm sorry but Arizona, Washington and Arizona State are average wins at best. These three teams will likely duke it out for middle-of-the-road in the Pac-12. I'm not saying Oregon isn't good. On the contrary, they're probably the best team on the West Coast right now but number two in the nation... I just can't do it. We'll find out if the Ducks are for real with three of their last four games on the road including trips to #10 USC and #8 Oregon State with a home game against #20 Stanford in the middle. If, and I mean if, they make it throught that they'll still probably have to beat USC again to win the Pac-12.
The team that really jumps out at me at this point in the season is the Florida Gators (that's saying a lot coming from a life-long Seminole fan). You'd be hard pressed to find a team that's earned it more than the Gators so far. Florida has back-to-back, come from behind road wins at Texas A&M (in their first SEC game) and Tennessee. Those two offenses are averaging 543ypg and 482ypg, respectively. Two weeks later took down LSU at home. Five of their six wins are against SEC opponents and three of those are on the road. You can throw style points out the window here, those are three quality wins.
I really don't think there's a better arguement than to just take a look at the quality of opponents they've played. Will the Gators remain undefeated? Doubt it. Their remaining opponents are a combined 24-9 and three of the six are ranked no lower than 14 in the BCS. Few teams in the country could make it through that gauntlet unscathed.
So, today, my number two is the Florida Gators.
2nd Down: After getting throttled, 63-21, last week in the Red River Shootout by Oklahoma is it time for Mack Brown to be on the hotseat at Texas? Should Texas start looking for its next head coach?
This maybe the most idiotic thing I have heard all season. I have told people all week, maybe other than Nick Saban, there is not a better ambassador for a college football team than Mack Brown. Let's just look at thre record and accomplisments of Brown first before I get into anything else. Overall record at Texas 134-41, yes that is 76.5 percent, so three of every four games he is winning. Second he has made 13 bowl games and produced four BCS bearths, including two National Championship bearths. He has compiled 10 10-win seasons, and two 13 win season. One undefeated season at 13-0, and a national championship against USC (who everyone tried to say was the best team ever in college football, but thats not part of this.)
Part of Mack's problem at Texas is he has had some pretty serious attrition at the top level of his coaching staff. The biggest departure was coach-in-waiting Will Mustchamp. Mustchamp is really turning around a Flordia. Actually turning around is not even the right word, making a power is the right wording. So let's look at his coaching staff. Major Applewhite is the offensive cordinator. Ok good college quarterback but obviously not a great college coach, maybe in the future but still a little too young for that job. Manny Diaz is the defensive cordinator and it is his first major Division I job. Now I understand that it is the head coach's job to find the best cordinators he can, attrition or not and that is the one place I would say he has not done a great job of. He needs to restructure his staff and go pluck some excellent cordinators from some major programs. Don't forget this is Texas and you can pretty much have your pick of coaches around the country. I bet there are even some mid-major head coaches who would take a cordinator job just to be at Texas.
I understand the recruiting aspect. Sure Brown is in the best state as far as recuriting goes, but when you have every other big team in the country plucking kids from your state it is tough to continually have those great programs. Bottom line, let's just stay calm Texas fans, you have one of the best coaches in the country in Mack Brown and getting rid of him right now would be the worst decision you could make. Give Mack some time and this team will return to the 10-win team you are used to seeing.
I'd like to agree and I do think that we get way too crazy, way too quickly when it comes to coaching changes. Mack Brown has done some incredible things at Texas, no doubt. That said, he's recruiting the best players in arguably the best state for recruting high school football players and they're not developing. You can only use the attrition in the coaching staff excuse for so long before it starts to fall on deaph ears. Attreition or not, it's the head coaches job to find and develop the coaches under him. Brown might just need a little more time to develop this staff, but this things don't start turning around soon, he's not going to get that chance. Before the loss to West Virginia, it looked like they were in for a really good season but after dropping to UWV, then getting blown-out by rival Oklahoma you've got to start to wonder if Mack Brown can bring this thing back.
While it's not apples to apples, this reminds me of Bobby Bowden's situation at Florida State. You've got a coach who is an institution at their institution, but as they get older and lose the top assistants, it gets harder and harder to keep your edge and continue to be successful. After their '00 championship loss to Oklahoma, FSU struggled through the final decade of the Bowden era losing top assistance along the way. Texas, after their loss to Alabama in the championship has lost a number of their assistants and has yet to rebound. They're 17-14 since that loss and that ain't going to cut it at Texas. Couple that with the fact that Brown is 61 and you're looking at a pretty tough situation. While I don't think it's time to pull the plug, AD DeLoss Dodds' patience will be tested moving forward. The Longhorns final six games are going to be rough and they're going to need to play significantly better to survive. The final six games of the season go: at home against Baylor, at Kansas, at #17 Texas Tech, home against #24 Iowa State and #23 TCU, then they end the season on the road against #4 Kansas State. Looking at this schedule, the only real gimmie is Kansas. After that, it could go either way and if the Longhorns don't show some urgency it's not unrealistic to see them going 1-5 or 2-4 to finish the season. While it might not be enough to get rid of Brown, you can be sure the heat will be full on if they finish around .500.
3rd Down: Midseason Awards
Best QB-
Nick:
Collin Kline-Kansas State
I think everyone would probably give this to Geno Smith, but being the devils advocate here, I think Kline diserves this. Sure Geno's numbers are unreal and video game like, but eventually he is going to come back to earth. Kline has the Wildcats looking like a national title contender. His numbers are not staggering, but a completion percentage of nearly 67 percent is good with 1,074 yards. He has seven touchdowns to just two interceptions. Kline has proven himself as the leader of this team and he may not be the most talanted quarterback in this discussion, but looks don't affect my decisions.
Jeremy:
Marcus Mariota- Oregon
Of couse this is super hypicritical for the guy who went on about how overrated Oregon is but Mariota's been solid this year leading the Ducks. The redshirt freshman had big shoes to fill replacing Darron Thomas and hasn't missed a beat. Oregon is eight in the nation in total offense, fourth in rushing offense and second in scoring offense. Not bad for a kid playing his first year of college football.
Best RB-
Nick:
Stefphon Jefferson-Nevada
Jefferson is unreal. This dude can play the game and is the only running back in the country with 1000-yards or more and he has 1,140 on the season. Not to mention he is averaging 5.2 yards per carry. He also leads the country in points with 90 on 14 touchdowns. He may not be playing the best opponents, but you cannot argue with his numbers. If he keeps it up he could be walking away with some serious hardware come season's end.
Jeremy:
Le'Veon Bell- Michigan State
I realize Bell has been up and down this season and didn't have great numbers against Notre Dame and Ohio State, but this guy has been pretty much a one man offense for the Spartans. With no passing game to speak of Bell has faced the full wrath of every defense he's had to go up against. He's eclipsed the century mark in four of seven games and has been over 200 twice. Dude's a stud.
Best WR
Nick:
DeAndre Hopkins-Clemson
For what is suposed to be the second best reciever on his team Hopkins looks better than Sammy Watkins. No I don't want to hear everyone is keying on Watkins and leaving Hopkins open. Do you leave someone open that has 49 receptions and over 775 yards on the season? No I think you cover him. Not to mention he has caught eight touchdowns and is averaging 15.9 yards per catch.
Jeremy:
Stedman Bailey & Tevon Austin- West Virginia
I know these two play for a video game offense that blows up their stats, but when you've got two receivers in the top six in the nation in yards, they deserve some props. This dynamic duo has accounted for 122 receptions, 1527 yards and 22 touchdowns... in six games! That's an average of 20.3 receptions, 254.5 yards and 3.6 touchdowns per game.
Best OL
Nick:
Barrett Jones-Alabama
There is a reason 'Bama has one of the best running attacks in the country. When you have a center like Jones who you can run behind every play, you can really make some noise. Jones will be playing on Sunday's next season.
Jeremy:
Ditto. Jones is as solid a lineman as there is in the nation and can play every position on the line.
Best DL
Nick:
Scott Crichton-Oregon State
Crichton plays on one of the best defenses in the country and he is a key that makes it that. Crichton has recorded eight sacks on the season and is averaging 1.6 per game which leads the country. He also has 11 tackles for loss which is fourth-best in the country. As just a sophomore that is pretty stout. With eight sacks through six games this kid could end up with 15 plus on the season.
Jeremy:
Bjoern Werner- Florida State
Forget Werner's 6.5 sacks this season. Werner lost his bookend and arguably the best lineman in the country in Brandon Jenkins in the second week of the season and all he's done since then is take on more blokers, while leading the 'Noles fourth ranked rush defense. Along with his 6.5 sacks, he's racked up a team high 10 tackles for loss and taken on countless double teams. Werner is an instinctive player that must be accounted for on every play.
Best LB
Nick:
Manti Te'o-Notre Dame
I had a lot of touble picking this position. Eventually what it came down to is how is the players team, so I had to go with Manti Te'o over Georgia's Jarvis Jones. Jones is a great player having a great season, but the Notre Dame defense is just to good to ignore its leader. Te'o is the leader of a fantastic Notre Dame defense. He has 59 total tackles on the season which is tied for 26th in the country. What is more impressive is he has three interceptions. As a linebacker with three picks in a season means you are really getting all over the field.
Jeremy:
It's hard to argue with Te'o. He's the best player on one of the best defenses in the nation. You don't get Heisman consideration on defense very often, especially at the linebacker position but Te'o is the real deal. Few linebackers are as solid verse the run and he's greatly improved in coverage.
Best CB
Nick:
Jason Veriett-TCU
I am going away from everyone else with this pick mostly because I like the way Veriett plays. This kid is a true lockdown corner. He has eight pass breakups and four interceptions this season. He doesn't have as many picks as everyone else because no one will throw at him.
Jeremy:
Xavier Rhodes- Florida State
Rhodes has only two picks on the year, but don't let that fool you. Team rarely throw at Rhodes, opting instead for one of the Seminoles other corners. At 6'2" 210lbs, Rhodes is a big, physical corner who has the ability to cut the field in half.
Best S
Nick:
Matt Elam-Florida
Elam is the best player on a very stout Florida defense that just keeps rolling. He helps this defense come up with big plays when needed. He is a true game-changing saftey and can do it all play the pass and play the run. He looks like an NFL ready defender for the Gators.
Jeremy:
Eric Reid- LSU
I like Elam here as well, but Reid is no slouch. He's one of the best players on the nations second best defense. Reid is a big, powerful saftey with two picks and 39 tackles on the season.
4th Down: Which team, good or bad has been your biggest surprise?
Nick-
I think the biggest suprise this season for me has been Notre Dame. To start the season this team did not have a quarterback and after six seasons of below average defenses I would not have picked this team to be unbeaten right now. Even playing with a two quarterback system this team has found way to score points when it needs to. Good thing for them they have one of the best defenses in the country to lean on because this offense runs into trouble with good defenses. Are the Domers back to being a national power? That has yet to be seen, with some big games coming up down the stretch. If this team goes undefeated it diserves a spot in the title game but even 10 wins should get it a good matchup in a BCS game.
Jeremy-
I like the Notre Dame call. I don't think anyone would have predicted them to be unbeaten at this point in the season. It really seems like Brian Kelly is hitting his stride with the Irish and they shouldn't be out of any game they play this season.
My biggest surprise of the season is the B1G, across the board. The ballers from the legends and leaders conference have been anything but unless you're talking about what they think of themselves and leading the way in underachieving. The B1G started the season with five teams ranked in the top 25 (#8 Michigan, #12 Wisconsin, #13 Michigan St., #17 Nebraska and #18 Ohio State) and are down to two- #7 Ohio State and #23 Michigan. But the Buckeyes are inelidgible for the post season and Michigan is more of a fringe top 25 team who's been in and out all year. Michigan State started the season at #13 and was a favorite for a lot of people as a dark horse national title contender. They're 4-3 and while their defense has been solid (13th in the nation), their offense is totally one-dimensional and can hardly get out of its own way. Nebraska has looked good at time this year, but when they're up against stiffer competition, they've crumbled and just got their asses kicked by Ohio State.
Wisconsin has looked "better" but are still a long way away from the team they were thought to be. Michigan has looked great against lower competition this year but got drilled by Alabama to start the season and lost a tough one to Notre Dame. Fortunately, they don't play another ranked team until Ohio State at the end of the season.
Oddly enough, the two biggest bright spots I see in the B1G are Northwestern, who's the first team from the conference to become bowl elidgable (way to carry the flag for the legends division!) and Penn State. When taken at face value and just focusing on this years Nittany Lion team, Bill O'Brien has these guys playing well after two early season losses. While they're not bowl eligible, they are much improved from where preseason expectations had them.
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