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September 1, 2010
Locker Room: South's preseason questions
The theme of every preseason is hope, which is expressed through hype. The college football season is one day away, which means the hype can finally be justified or disproved on the gridiron. The preseason is a time when every team is optimistic and hopeful regardless of their situation, but reality and hope aren't proportional.
Here are six preseason questions, one for each team in the Big 12 South.
Baylor: Can the Bears finally bring something to the Big 12 table?
Art Briles is a respected coach and the team clearly plays hard for him, but turning spam to steak isn't an easy thing to do.
The Bears' irrelevance has been the one constant in the Big 12. In the offseason the Bears meaninglessness to the conference was magnified when they were left out of any realignment talks and almost left out to dry (or rot) entirely before the conference was saved.
The talent in Waco is improving and although the record might not show it, the Baylor on-field product has significantly improved since Briles arrived. However, it's time for Baylor to show some improvement in the win-loss column.
Baylor could capitalize on Oklahoma State's problems and send them to the South cellar, but will need a healthy Robert Griffinto do so. If the players on the Baylor roster have any sense of pride they should use the offseason as motivation, but even that might not be enough.
Despite all of the pokes and stabs at Baylor, I like the bears to turn the corner in 2009 and compete for a postseason appearance, upsetting Texas A&M or TCU along the way.
Oklahoma: Can the Sooners protect Landry Jones?
Coming into last season Oklahoma had questions on the offensive line and it ended up being a problem all season. The Sooners had trouble protecting Sam Bradford and Landry Jones in 2009 and will head into this season with question marks on the offensive line, again.
Oklahoma will have three new starters on the offensive line in 2010, but seem confident that protecting the quarterback wont be a major problem. OU seems like the popular pick to win the conference, a smart pick if they can keep Jones in his feet.
Usually it's a bad thing when you lose three starters on the offensive line, but with how ineffective and banged-up the Oklahoma line was last season it's hard to believe the Sooners could have any worse of an offensive line than they did last season.
Oklahoma State: Have Boone's boys topped out?
It's going to be a long year in Stillwater.
Oklahoma State has had recent success in the Big 12, but 2010 could be a complete disaster for the Cowboys.
The Pokes lose four offensive linemen, a three-year starting quarterback and nine starters on defense. They will also be relying on Brandon Weeden, a 26-year-old junior quarterback, to lead a new offensive scheme under Dana Holgorsen.
Making OSU's situation even more tragic is the fact that Mike Gundy, a coach who often doesn't even watch the game when the defense is on the field, wont be calling his own plays.
Texas: Will Garrett Gilbert be able to replace Colt McCoy at Texas?
Perhaps the most frequently question in the Big 12 this offseason, but quite possibly the most misleading.
There is no denying the Texas offense was built around Colt McCoy in 2009 and his importance cant be measured statistically, but it's also hard for anyone who watched the big Texas games in 2009 to think McCoy played well in them.
Contrary to popular belief and an unwarranted invite to New York for the Heisman ceremony last season, McCoy wasn't that good in 2009, especially against good teams. In fact, it's debatable Texas won their three biggest games of the season despite McCoy's poor performances.
Against Tech, Oklahoma and Nebraska McCoy combined for a modest 65 for 109 passing with three touchdowns and six interceptions. Despite being considered a dual-threat, McCoy averaged less than 20 yards rushing per-game.
A closer look at the stats…
Against Tech McCoy finished with 205 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions on 24 of 34 passing.
In Dallas against the Sooners McCoy had 127 yards, one touchdown and one interception on 21 of 39 passing.
Against Nebraska in the Big 12 Championship McCoy threw three interceptions and on 20 for 36 passing.
There is no doubt Texas initially struggled to move the ball against the Alabama defense in last season's BCS national championship game when Garrett Gilbert was forced to replace the injured Colt McCoy, but there is also no guarantee Texas would've been able to move the ball if McCoy would've stayed healthy.
Texas A&M: Are the Aggies as close to making noise as a lot of the media thinks they are?
The Aggies are considered one of the best offenses in the entire nation and the fact they will start at least four freshmen on the offensive line is being ignored.
The Aggies also had the 105th ranked defense in the nation last season and didn't belong on the same field as their opponent on multiple occasions. The optimistic Aggie faithful hope a new defensive coordinator will improve the defense and the freshman-heavy offensive line can block for the offense, but there are way too many assumptions in College Station to consider the Aggies a legitimate dark horse in the Big 12.
Texas Tech: What are realistic expectations for Tech first-year coach Tommy Tuberville?
Tommy Tuberville won't be making off-field headlines and bringing any extra attention to the Tech program with controversial one-liners. All the Texas Tech headlines in 2010 will come on the field. Whether or not those headlines are positive, or negative is to be determined, but there is no doubt the first-year coach will be under a magnifying glass in his inaugural season
In my opinion, the biggest question mark for Tech is whether or not Tuberville has the personnel on the current roster run an effective 3-4 defensive scheme, the depth on offense isn't an issue and the offense should be fine.
There have been rumblings that Tuberville would like to run the ball more than his predecessor and Tech's personnel could allow him to do so. The Red Raiders are stacked at running back with five quality backs on the roster including: Baron Batch, Eric Stephens, and the reemerging Aaron Crawford. Freshman Ben McRoy and sophomore Harrison Jeffers aren't listed on Tech's initial depth chart, but could also contribute in 2010.
There are three things Tuberville can do to win over his remaining skeptics in his first season
1.) Avoid a letdown
2.) Embrace the school's traditions
3.) Continue to improve recruiting
Tech's former coach could afford to lose the occasional game he shouldn't because he had skins on the wall. A loss to an inferior Colorado team could be swept under the rug by an upset of Oklahoma., Tuberville is the new guy in town and doesn't have that luxury.
It might be too much to ask Tuberville to beat Texas or Oklahoma in his first season, but he can't afford to lose to one of the bottom-tier teams in the conference.
Tuberville has already done an excellent job embracing Tech's traditions and showing everyone he truly wants to be in Lubbock, something the previous coach never really did. Now he just has to win games.
As for the actual win total. The Red Raiders won over nine games (including bowl game) only once in 10 seasons under the previous coach. If Tuberville can win nine total games in his inaugural season it should be considered a huge success, especially with the recruiting class he is currently putting together.
Here are six preseason questions, one for each team in the Big 12 South.
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| Will Baylor turn the corner in 2010? |
Art Briles is a respected coach and the team clearly plays hard for him, but turning spam to steak isn't an easy thing to do.
The Bears' irrelevance has been the one constant in the Big 12. In the offseason the Bears meaninglessness to the conference was magnified when they were left out of any realignment talks and almost left out to dry (or rot) entirely before the conference was saved.
The talent in Waco is improving and although the record might not show it, the Baylor on-field product has significantly improved since Briles arrived. However, it's time for Baylor to show some improvement in the win-loss column.
Baylor could capitalize on Oklahoma State's problems and send them to the South cellar, but will need a healthy Robert Griffinto do so. If the players on the Baylor roster have any sense of pride they should use the offseason as motivation, but even that might not be enough.
Despite all of the pokes and stabs at Baylor, I like the bears to turn the corner in 2009 and compete for a postseason appearance, upsetting Texas A&M or TCU along the way.
Oklahoma: Can the Sooners protect Landry Jones?
Coming into last season Oklahoma had questions on the offensive line and it ended up being a problem all season. The Sooners had trouble protecting Sam Bradford and Landry Jones in 2009 and will head into this season with question marks on the offensive line, again.
Oklahoma will have three new starters on the offensive line in 2010, but seem confident that protecting the quarterback wont be a major problem. OU seems like the popular pick to win the conference, a smart pick if they can keep Jones in his feet.
Usually it's a bad thing when you lose three starters on the offensive line, but with how ineffective and banged-up the Oklahoma line was last season it's hard to believe the Sooners could have any worse of an offensive line than they did last season.
Oklahoma State: Have Boone's boys topped out?
It's going to be a long year in Stillwater.
Oklahoma State has had recent success in the Big 12, but 2010 could be a complete disaster for the Cowboys.
The Pokes lose four offensive linemen, a three-year starting quarterback and nine starters on defense. They will also be relying on Brandon Weeden, a 26-year-old junior quarterback, to lead a new offensive scheme under Dana Holgorsen.
Making OSU's situation even more tragic is the fact that Mike Gundy, a coach who often doesn't even watch the game when the defense is on the field, wont be calling his own plays.
Texas: Will Garrett Gilbert be able to replace Colt McCoy at Texas?
Perhaps the most frequently question in the Big 12 this offseason, but quite possibly the most misleading.
There is no denying the Texas offense was built around Colt McCoy in 2009 and his importance cant be measured statistically, but it's also hard for anyone who watched the big Texas games in 2009 to think McCoy played well in them.
Contrary to popular belief and an unwarranted invite to New York for the Heisman ceremony last season, McCoy wasn't that good in 2009, especially against good teams. In fact, it's debatable Texas won their three biggest games of the season despite McCoy's poor performances.
Against Tech, Oklahoma and Nebraska McCoy combined for a modest 65 for 109 passing with three touchdowns and six interceptions. Despite being considered a dual-threat, McCoy averaged less than 20 yards rushing per-game.
A closer look at the stats…
Against Tech McCoy finished with 205 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions on 24 of 34 passing.
In Dallas against the Sooners McCoy had 127 yards, one touchdown and one interception on 21 of 39 passing.
|  |
| |
| What are realistic expectations for Year 1? |
There is no doubt Texas initially struggled to move the ball against the Alabama defense in last season's BCS national championship game when Garrett Gilbert was forced to replace the injured Colt McCoy, but there is also no guarantee Texas would've been able to move the ball if McCoy would've stayed healthy.
Texas A&M: Are the Aggies as close to making noise as a lot of the media thinks they are?
The Aggies are considered one of the best offenses in the entire nation and the fact they will start at least four freshmen on the offensive line is being ignored.
The Aggies also had the 105th ranked defense in the nation last season and didn't belong on the same field as their opponent on multiple occasions. The optimistic Aggie faithful hope a new defensive coordinator will improve the defense and the freshman-heavy offensive line can block for the offense, but there are way too many assumptions in College Station to consider the Aggies a legitimate dark horse in the Big 12.
Texas Tech: What are realistic expectations for Tech first-year coach Tommy Tuberville?
Tommy Tuberville won't be making off-field headlines and bringing any extra attention to the Tech program with controversial one-liners. All the Texas Tech headlines in 2010 will come on the field. Whether or not those headlines are positive, or negative is to be determined, but there is no doubt the first-year coach will be under a magnifying glass in his inaugural season
In my opinion, the biggest question mark for Tech is whether or not Tuberville has the personnel on the current roster run an effective 3-4 defensive scheme, the depth on offense isn't an issue and the offense should be fine.
There have been rumblings that Tuberville would like to run the ball more than his predecessor and Tech's personnel could allow him to do so. The Red Raiders are stacked at running back with five quality backs on the roster including: Baron Batch, Eric Stephens, and the reemerging Aaron Crawford. Freshman Ben McRoy and sophomore Harrison Jeffers aren't listed on Tech's initial depth chart, but could also contribute in 2010.
There are three things Tuberville can do to win over his remaining skeptics in his first season
1.) Avoid a letdown
2.) Embrace the school's traditions
3.) Continue to improve recruiting
Tech's former coach could afford to lose the occasional game he shouldn't because he had skins on the wall. A loss to an inferior Colorado team could be swept under the rug by an upset of Oklahoma., Tuberville is the new guy in town and doesn't have that luxury.
It might be too much to ask Tuberville to beat Texas or Oklahoma in his first season, but he can't afford to lose to one of the bottom-tier teams in the conference.
Tuberville has already done an excellent job embracing Tech's traditions and showing everyone he truly wants to be in Lubbock, something the previous coach never really did. Now he just has to win games.
As for the actual win total. The Red Raiders won over nine games (including bowl game) only once in 10 seasons under the previous coach. If Tuberville can win nine total games in his inaugural season it should be considered a huge success, especially with the recruiting class he is currently putting together.
