After a short hiatus, I'm back (though probably not better than ever), and ready to get back into the college football previews with the season right around the corner. Now the Pac-10, which features my favorite team (UCLA), but it hasn't really been all the competitive of late, as USC has looked down on everyone else for the past few years. They have the talent to do that again, but they'll be very young. Let's take a look.
Player of the Year: The favorite coming in is Cal's Marshawn Lynch. He's an explosive runner, has a good offense around him, and will get the ball (even with fellow RB Justin Forsett there). He is one of the top returning RB in all of college football. Elsewhere, USC has great athletes once again, led by WR Dwayne Jarrett, who might be the best WR in the nation, coming off of 29 TD in his first two years. The biggest darkhorse in this race could be John David Booty, who looks to be stepping in as the USC starting QB. Remember what happened the last time USC replaced a star QB? There are no shortage of weapons for Booty (including the best WR corps in the nation), so if he stays healthy, he could be a candidate here. Lastly, whoever wins the ASU QB job will be in the running. Right now, it looks like Sam Keller has the inside track, but Rudy Carpenter showed last year he can put up big numbers and win ballgames. But in the end, I think it will come down to Marshawn Lynch being the most talented player in the conference, playing on a good Cal team. I like him to be the Conference Player of the Year.
Freshmen to Watch: It'll be really interesting to watch the trio of freshman RBs for USC - Stafon Johnson, Emmanuel Moody, and CJ Gable - because all of them could get chances this year. The frontrunner to get the most carries of the 3 is probably Stafon Johnson, one of the top RB prospects in the nation. For other freshman, we don't really have to look further than the Trojans skill players, because WR Vidal Hazelton could also have an impact on offense and special teams. Sure, the receiving corps is loaded (Jarrett, Steve Smith, Patrick Turner), but they were loaded last year and Patrick Turner got on the field. Pete Carroll is not shy about playing freshman, so Hazelton should get his chances.
Breakout Players: There are some solid young QBs in the Pac-10, and perhaps none of them is better than UCLA's Ben Olson, at least on paper. We've probably all heard the story - he was a top prospect, went on his Mormon mission, then came to UCLA - so he has the talent. If he can pick up the offense well, he should be very productive replacing Drew Olson. Another young QB is Willie Tuitama of Arizona. He was very productive for Arizona once Mike Stoops took the redshirt off, and that should just create momentum for this year.
Other Things to Watch: Can anyone in the Pac-10 beat USC? The three best teams other than UCLA are Cal, Oregon, and Arizona St... which all go on the road to play USC this year. In other words, my guess is a resounding no. Another interesting thing is to see who will be Cal's starting QB... Nate Longshore was it last year until he got hurt, and then Joe Ayoob came in an struggled. If they can get any type of reliability and consistency there, they will be firing on all cylinders. And sorry Washington fans, despite an experienced QB and improving D, Washington doesn't have enough to crawl much higher than the depths of the Pac-10.
UPDATE: All of this ASU QB talk is null becuase now it looks like Sam Keller may have been released from his scholarship, and possibly plans to transfer. Needless to say, this is big news for the Pac-10, Rudy Carpenter, and whichever team Sam Keller might possibly go to (Nebraska?) Very interesting stuff indeed.
Best Games:
- Arizona St. at USC - The Sun Devils gave USC a tough test last year, and with their talented QBs, they have a chance to do that again. (October 14th)
- California at USC - Cal remains the last Pac-10 team to beat USC way back when. (November 18th)
- Arizona St. at Arizona - The in-state rivalry should be made better as Arizona gets better. (November 25th)
Projected Order of Finish
1. USC
2. California
3. Arizona St.
4. Oregon
5. UCLA
6. Arizona
7. Stanford
8. Oregon St.
9. Washington St.
10. Washington
6 comments:
how about your thoughts on Jonathan Stewart, Oregon RB?
Stewart's definitely interesting... he's obviously got talent as he was a big recruit coming out of high school, he's got good size for a RB, but he's quick too. Though looking at the numbers, he didn't really have any impact last year. Now, whether that was because of inexperience or another reason I'm not sure because admittedly, I didn't get to see Oregon play a whole lot. I suspect it was inexperience, and he should be a solid player as Oregon brings back some nice pieces (Dixon, Leaf, etc.)
Plus, Oregon is always very tough at home, and if things break right I think they've got a shot to finish top 2 in the Pac-10.
USC ain't what it used to be.
interesting stuff about keller. i thought the job was his, but dirk koetter is apparently indecisive.
nice words about UW, Twins. Love the optimism. haha.
"USC ain't what it used to be."
This is true. But, they're loaded with young talent on offense, their defense is talented and now more experienced, and their 3 toughest Pac-10 opponents they all play at home. Things look good for the Trojans once again.
Washington State has a lot of weapons on offense and will finish around 5th in the Pac-10 this season. You are way off with a 9th place prediction.
Last years youth=this years experience.
Right on with Washington though, they arent going anywhere for quite some time.
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