FRO’s Favorite Five College Football Picks
By Max Baez
Contributing Writer-Football Reporters Online
(photo: Brandon James of Florida Returned a Punt for a TD in last years win Over the Vols, How Bad will it Be This Year?-Photo Via PicApp)

While this week doesn’t have the big time matchups between top 10 teams that occurred the first two weeks of the season, there are still plenty of intriguing games this weekend. The most talked about game of this weekend is taking place at Florida, who hosts Tennessee. Of course, this game isn’t hyped because of their performances so far this season, instead, it is fueled by the trash talk that new Tennessee coach Lane Kiffin threw at the Gators in the offseason. Now, for the predictions of the five games that are the biggest, at least in my mind, this weekend.

Tennessee @ Florida

We heard it from Lane Kiffin in the offseason, who falsely accused Gators coach Urban Meyer of recruiting violations while also claiming that he was going to be “singing Rocky Top all night long” after beating Florida. These statements will be very hard to backup, considering many believe Florida to be the best team in the country while Tennessee’s offense looked anemic last weekend in a home loss to UCLA. Florida is the superior team, they are out to get the Vols after all the offseason comments, and the game is in the swamp, so all signs point to a blowout.

Florida 52, Tennessee 10


Nebraska @ Virginia Tech

Winning this matchup would go a long way to restoring Nebraska’s status as one of college football’s elite programs. Even though Bo Pelini has already ripped the team’s defense for being soft (after they allowed only 3, that’s right, 3 points against Florida Atlantic), the defense is very solid, and the same goes for Virginia Tech. I’m expecting a low scoring affair, but I think Tyrod Taylor and the Hokies offense get just enough done to secure a win.

Virginia Tech 16, Nebraska 13


Cincinnati @ Oregon State

This game has been overlooked by practically everyone, but this should be an exciting, high scoring affair. Cincinnati won the Big East last year and looks very strong again this year, while Oregon State is still a bit of an unknown due to having a completely new defense. Their game against UNLV last week was way too close, so I have a feeling this week won’t be a great one for the home crowd. There will be lots of points, however, with Cincinnati QB Tony Pike putting up big numbers in a Bearcat victory.

Cincinnati 41, Oregon State 31


Florida State @ BYU

It feels weird saying that once powerhouse Florida State beating non-BCS school BYU would be an upset, but in 2009, it definitely would be. BYU is off to a hot start this season, already knocking off Oklahoma, and a win against FSU wouldn’t just strengthen their profile to be selected to a BCS game, it would actually give them a glimmer of hope that they could play for the national title if they run the table. However, I expect the BYU BCS talk to stop here. FSU had a wake up call last week, almost losing to Jacksonville State, but their to the wire performance against Miami shows that the team has the ability to be very good, especially since the Miami team they lost to has looked very good since. FSU has better athletes than BYU, and if FSU puts it together, this is a very winnable game. The one thing working against FSU is BYU’s potent offense, led by darkhorse Heisman candidate Max Hall, but if FSU can slow down the offense while putting up points of their own (which they should be able to do, as long as they play like they did week 1 as opposed to week 2), then the Noles will win.

Florida State 31, BYU 24


West Virginia @ Auburn

This would have been a marquee game three years ago, when West Virginia was the powerhouse of the Big East and Auburn was a top tier SEC team. West Virginia has clearly lost a step after losing Rich Rodriguez, and losing Pat White doesn’t help things either, but the offense still has plenty of weapons, led by Noel Devine. However, West Virginia hasn’t been particularly impressive in their first two wins, while Auburn has been a surprise. Last year, the Auburn offense was, to put it lightly, not very good, but new coordinator Gus Malzahn has been able to implement his version of the spread offense with lots of early success, averaging 43 points a game. Traveling down to Jordan-Hare Stadium will be tough for the Mountaineers, and with a spread offense that actually works, I expect Auburn to win this one.

Auburn 38, West Virginia 24

Other games to watch this week: Texas Tech @ Texas, California @ Minnesota, Arizona @ Iowa, Georgia @ Arkansas, Utah @ Oregon

 
                                         The SEC Wrap Up Week 2

By Rafael Garcia Sr. Contributing Writer-Southeast Region-Football Reporters Online
 
So it’s the second week of the season and some teams had some easy ones to start the year. A week later there were expected wins and of course unexpected losses. So sit back and let’s talk about how this weekend unfolded.
 
UCLA 19 Tennessee 15
 
After a laugher against Western Kentucky the Vols found themselves at reality check’s door week 2. The Bruins were a different monster on this day even though they were supposed to lose this game. Remember all the noise that Lane Kiffin made before the season began? Well he is a bit quiet after the debacle on Saturday. He is beginning to realize that it is going to take some time for this rebuilding process. The Vols offense was nothing short of anemic turning the ball over four times. They managed just 208 total yards and one touchdown. Kiffin left quarterback Jonathan Crompton in too long and he admitted it cost his team big. Crompton finished 13-26 for 93 yards and three picks. The problem for Tennessee is that he is all they have. He beat out Nick Stephens for the job so what does that say about their depth at that position? There was some infighting between players after the game, prompting Kiffin to rally his troops, but it will be on the field where they will have to make a difference. Either way the problems that hurt them last year seem to be creeping up again and that won’t fly in Knoxville. Kiffin will have to make decisions to change the team. Will he go with Stephens or stick with Crompton? What changes will he make to generate more offense? Next is Florida and a performance like this one is going to get them blown right out of the swamp. One way or another there will have to be change or this season will be a long one.
 
Georgia 41 South Carolina 37
 
Wow was this a crazy game or what? This one had special teams play, defense and a lot of penalties too. With all that happened it all came down to one last play before this one would be decided. There was 22 seconds left and the Gamecocks had the ball at the 7-yard line. South Carolina quarterback Stephen Garcia tried to win it but was turned back when his pass was swatted away by Rennie Curran. It helped the Dawgs avoid a 0-2 start for the first time since 1996. Garcia had a big day as he went 31-53 for 313 yards two scores and one pick. His counterpart Joe Cox was 17-24 for 201 yards and two touchdowns. He also had one interception returned 35 yards for a score too. South Carolina kicker Spencer Lanning tied a team record with five field goals. It was a much-improved offense after scoring just seven points last week. As for Georgia, well they could ill afford to be winless and were able to eek out the win on that big play at the end. Brandon Boynkin had a huge game with a 100-yard kickoff return for a touchdown and set up another score with an interception. DeAngelo Tyson had the huge play of the game when he blocked an extra point try. That block did not allow South Carolina to tie the game with a field goal. Instead they had to go for the win and missed out. The defenses obviously had a hard time of it giving up so many points in the first half that ended with Georgia up 31-23 at the half. So there is next week now and much more work to do.
 
LSU 23 Vanderbilt 9
 
On a rain soaked afternoon the Tigers found out they still have much work to do although they got the win. Head coach Les Miles said after the game that he was happy to get a win, but acknowledged that his team must play better in the weeks to come. The Dores were trying to win at LSU for the first time in nearly 50 years. They were still in the game until Keiland Williams caught a late touchdown pass. The Vandy defense played well in a loss holding LSU to three filed goals after allowing them inside their 20.  Tiger quarterback Jordan Jefferson was 20-29 but had only 138 yards passing to show for it. He had problems finding deep receivers all day and had to check down to the short routes in order to move the ball. Freshman Russell Shepard got in some playing time in the wildcat rushing three times for 27 yards and catching a six-yard pass that he fumbled away. Their defense turned it up in the second half as they shut Vanderbilt down in the second half. The Commodores really hurt themselves bad when penalties allowed the Tigers to keep drives going. Quarterback Larry Smith had the only touchdown for Vandy and went 11-24 for only 88 yards with one interception. All in all head coach Bobby Johnson has reason to be pleased. He saw his team stay almost toe-to-toe with a national power. That will only help his team’s confidence going forward. They will need all they can get a hold of as they try to get to consecutive bowls.
 
Elsewhere, the Gators turned it up as AT&Tebow racked up four touchdown passes plus another rushing score. It put him third in the SEC for rushing touchdowns and within five of the lead for overall touchdowns. The Gators won the game 56-6 in preparation for Tennessee. Down in Tuscaloosa Alabama had no problem with Florida International as they whipped up on them in a 40-14 rout. Highly regarded freshman Trent Richardson showed out as he rushed for 118 yards on 15 carries with two scores in his first full action. The Auburn Tigers went wild with their new offense and racked up 589 yards with Ben Tate ran for 159 yards and freshman Onterio McCalebb had 1220. It was the first time a freshman has had over 100 yards rushing ever for Auburn Yes folks that would include the likes of Bo Jackson.

Photo: Not Even Tim Tebow, shown here at the "BCS Celebration" can fix this problem
The BCS Needs Fixing-By Max Baez Football Reporters Online

We all know the BCS is going to be controversial come December, so why not write about it now?
The BCS has been around for over a decade. Before the BCS, the Pac-10 and Big 10 champion always played each other in the Rose Bowl, and because of this, it meant that the two highest ranked teams at the end of the season were not always playing one another in the national title game. To change this, the BCS was created, where a system mixing polls and computer rankings was created to find the two “best” teams in the country to play each other on one glorious night to establish one national champion.

Of course, we all know this has worked out just as well as Jon and Kate’s marriage. In the majority of the years since the BCS was created, there has been a controversy over the two teams placed by the system into the national title game. As we all know, last year was a particularly good example of why the BCS is such a terrible system, with Utah and Boise State finishing the regular season undefeated and Oklahoma, Texas, Texas Tech, Alabama, Florida, Penn State, and USC all having one loss and all feeling as if they belonged in the title game.

One thing last year the perfect example of why the BCS is a failure comes from the Big 12, where we all remember that Oklahoma beat Texas Tech, who beat Texas, who beat Oklahoma, and that all three had one loss. They all had a legitimate reason for believing they belonged in the title game (although most recognize that Texas Tech was not as good as the other two, beating Texas on a series of fluke plays before being blown out by Oklahoma), and in the end, Oklahoma was selected to the title game, where they would lose to Florida.

This year, it is obviously yet to be determined what kind of BCS problem we will have. Maybe it will be like the problem of 2008, or maybe it won’t be a problem like it was during the 2005 season, when two and only two BCS conference teams finished undefeated (Texas and USC.) Still, even if the BCS works once in a while, it doesn’t work all of the time (or even half the time), and it’s time to finally fix this. It’s time for a playoff. I’m saying this even though I realize a playoff is likely to never happen, but college football absolutely, positively needs a playoff.

The playoff, a fixture in American sports, is used to determine the title winner of everything, except, of course, the champion of NCAA D1 FBS football. Even all of the other NCAA football divisions use it, everyone but the FBS. Of course, there’s a reason for this, since if everyone agreed that a playoff was the best option, we would have it.
The reason why a playoff doesn’t exist is because the college presidents of BCS schools don’t want one. They like the BCS. It guarantees them a ton of money, with no team having to play more than one game. It makes it hard for non-BCS conference schools to get involved, and thus take away from the money for BCS conference schools. It insures that the season ends right before the start of the spring semester of college, meaning less practice and travel time for athletes. However, there are arguments to be made against these key reasons why college presidents want to keep the BCS.

In terms of money, the BCS presidents love that they make so much off of one game, but with a playoff, there will still be tons of interest, great TV ratings, and more games, meaning more money. With a playoff, college football’s postseason would rival the greatness of the NCAA basketball tournament, and it surely would be a huge cash win for all of the college presidents. In reality, this should entice college presidents towards supporting a playoff.
In terms of non-BCS conference schools, it’s about time to give them a shot of winning a national title. Utah probably would not have won the title last year, as I doubt they would have beat Florida or Oklahoma, but the regular season they had means they deserved a shot, which would make college football a whole lot more fair (and is something a playoff would provide.) Secondly, not only is a playoff the most fair system, but with more postseason games, there would be more profits for the colleges involved.

Thirdly, we’ve heard college presidents give their speeches about how a college playoff would make the academic schedule harder for the players. This is funny, because they are only using this argument because it’s convenient for them. I don’t see these same college presidents crying foul about baseball players playing up to five games a week, forcing players to miss the majority of the school week at times. Football games are played on Saturdays, players can fly out on Friday and barely miss any classes (if any at all.) Also, the playoff would be during the beginning of the spring semester, which isn’t exactly the most stressful time in the classroom anyway.

Opponents of the BCS are also concerned that a playoff system would take away from the bowls, but this isn’t true at all. The same bowl games for 7-5 teams will have the same meaning for those involved with a playoff than they are now. Also, certain bowl games can be mixed into a playoff system. The first round of a sixteen team playoff can be at the home sites of the highest ranked teams. I propose sixteen teams, because I feel eight could leave some deserving teams out, although an eight team playoff would be better than none at all. The quarterfinals would be Fiesta, Sugar, Rose, and Orange Bowls, allowing these bowl games to retain an elite status. Semifinals and finals are neutral sites.

There it is, a sixteen team playoff. A true national champion. Conference champions of the “big six” conferences, ten at-larges determined by a selection committee. Winners of the small conferences could potentially have a shot. Lose two early games and then get hot towards the end of the season, and you still have a chance at winning at all. This is my dream, and this is how college football needs to be.

2009 Pac-10 Predictions
By Max Baez For Football Reporters Online

While much of the country sees the Pac-10 as USC and nine others, every year lately it has been just that: nine other teams trying to knock off USC as the conference champion. USC has held at least a share of the conference title every year since 2002, and with consistent top five recruiting classes and an absolutely loaded roster, it is easy to see how they are able to achieve this. However, USC is not invisible, as they have not gone undefeated in conference play since 2005 and Oregon State was one game away from winning the title last year. However, will this be the year USC is finally not at the top?

And with the predictions, USC is at the number one spot. While USC lost some key talent, including QB Mark Sanchez and all of their starting linebackers (two of whom were first round picks), they have reloaded as they always have someone waiting in the wings. Freshman QB Matt Barkley has been given the starting job, and QB Mitch Mustain, who went 8-0 as a starting QB as a freshman at Arkansas in the SEC, is a third stringer, which just shows how loaded their roster is. There are really no weaknesses on the roster at all, and S Taylor Mays is certainly one of the best defenders in America.

Now, for the rest of the rankings:

2. California. It’s tough to choose between Cal and Oregon for the two spot, but coach Jeff Tedford has Cal in a great position to succeed this year. The defensive backs are the best in the Pac-10, especially at corner, and RB Jahvid Best may just be the best running back in America. With 17 starters returning, Cal looks solid to challenge USC. However, they should fall just a bit short, especially since Cal’s passing game, led by QB Kevin Riley, leaves something to be desired.

3. Oregon. Former offensive coordinator Chip Kelly steps in as head coach and he certainly has some weapons to play with up in Eugene with a great running game and QB Jeremiah Masoli, who showed towards the end of last year that he has the skills to run Kelly’s run-oriented spread offense very effectively. Oregon is lucky in that they have the Pac-10’s best home field advantage and host both USC and Cal, but unfortunately they are just not at the same level as either of the two.

4. Arizona. Arizona was disrespected at the Pac-10 media day, where they were selected to finish 8th in the conference after making a bowl game for the first time in a decade last year. While key players QB Willie Tuitama, OT Eben Britton, and WR Mike Thomas departed, the core of the defense remains in tact, which should be one of the Pac-10’s strongest. The big question mark is at quarterback, where neither Matt Scott or Nick Foles has been able to solidify the starting job. However, whoever wins the job will have many weapons to work with, including TE Rob Gronkowski, one of the nation’s best, and 1000 yard RB Nic Grigsby. Arizona should be the surprise of the conference, and that means a similar win count to last year.

5. Oregon State. The Beavers were very close to winning the Pac-10 last season, beating USC early in the year and leading the conference until losing to Oregon in the season finale. Sophomore RB Jacquizz Rodgers was the Pac-10 offensive player of the year award last season, and the diminutive back is a pain for defenses to take down, but only three starters return on defense, so growing pains are to be expected in Corvallis.

6. Stanford. The academic powerhouse has turned into a recruiting destination under coach Jim Harbaugh, who recently brought in a top 20 recruiting class. RB Toby Gerhart is solid, QB Andrew Luck was very highly touted out of high school, and the defense is strong in the front seven. However, the defensive backs are a major liability, and while this team could potentially end up making a bowl game, they aren’t among the conference’s best, but Harbaugh has the team headed in that direction.

7. Arizona State. The biggest problem with Arizona State is the offensive line. It’s simply not very good. Rudy Carpenter got killed last year, and there’s little reason to believe things will be better for new starting QB Danny Sullivan. The strength of the team is on the defensive line, which is solid all around. ASU’s defense will also get a boost if standout freshman LB Vontaze Burfict qualifies, but that’s a major question mark at this time.

8. UCLA. Lots of people are very confident UCLA will have a major improvement this year, but I think they are still a year away. Coach Rich Neuheisel has built winners before, and based on how he’s recruiting, it looks like he’s on that track at UCLA. However, the offensive line is still likely to be terrible, the running game will probably still be awful (it was a dreadful 116th in college football last year), and starting QB Kevin Prince has no collegiate experience. The defense should be solid, but UCLA is going to have a lot of problems putting points up on the board.

9. Washington. The good news: QB Jake Locker is back. He could be the best QB in the Pac-10 this season. Also, coach Steve Sarkisian has gotten off to a great start recruiting, and the school is becoming confident that success is on the horizon. However, success will not come this year. But it could be worse, they could be…..

10. Washington State. This program is seriously a mess. Second year coach Paul Wulff has a major rebuilding job to do, and based on early recruiting measures, it doesn’t look like he’s bringing too much talent in. The Cougars aren’t strong in any area, and the fact that they had open tryouts on campus for QB last year just says it all. It will be a long season this year in Pullman.

Report from the Rose Bowl: San Diego State vs. UCLA By Will Osgood –Football Reporters Online

If you only watched the first quarter of the San Diego State UCLA game on Saturday night, you would’ve thought the Aztecs are going to challenge for the Mountain West title this season, and that UCLA is going to go winless. But the reality is that neither of those events are going to happen. The Bruins’ play in the final three quarters assured us of that.

Being in the Rose Bowl on Saturday night gave me a unique perspective on what was otherwise not thought of by most college football fans as a big game. One could see that UCLA is a much more talented team in year two under Rick Neuheisel, and that his style and schemes are beginning to pay off. Of course, next week in Knoxville the team will have a nice little test on national television to show just how improved they are.
Regardless, Saturday night there were a few athletes that stood out, and proved 2009 will be a breakout year for their NFL stock.

The truth is that even wildfires could not stop players such as Brian Price, Alterraun Verner, Reggie Carter, Luke Laologi, and Vincent Brown from making their presence known early and often. And that is only a list of upperclassmen. UCLA sophomore safety Raheem Moore picked off three passes on the day.

Two of those three passes were thrown up in the face of pressure by SDSU Redshirt sophomore QB Ryan Lindley. And who caused that pressure? Brian Price and Reggie Carter. Price, a junior defensive tackle, left the game for a series early in the game, but came back to terrorize Lindley and give Carter and other linebackers countless opportunities to hit Lindley and shut down the running game.

Carter, the middle linebacker, did a wonderful job of getting his defense aligned properly to San Diego State’s multiple formation West Coast Offense. Beyond just aligning properly, Carter had six tackles, and pressured the quarterback on a number of blitzes.

Also contributing largely for UCLA was Alterraun Verner who proved to be an elite special teams player when he returned a blocked kick 70 yards for a touchdown. He also recorded two tackles and had zero missed tackles, a large improvement from a season ago.

For San Diego State, Vincent Brown proved that despite being a junior, the NFL is a very real possibility even this year, although I’m definitely not advocating he leave early. He looked quicker than most of UCLA’s defensive backs, save Verner, although the two rarely went one-on-one (crazy to me given they were the two best “speed” players on the field). Brown regularly beat his man to get open, and even caught a 78 yard touchdown pass on a play where Lindley just threw it up and let Brown run under the ball. Brown beat the UCLA coverage many other times and finished with five catches for 139 yards and a touchdown.

Finally, SDSU linebacker Luke Laolagi, was swarming the field all day, putting pressure on Kevin Prince on blitzes and showed great athleticism and instincts when he picked off a pass and returned it over twenty yards in the second half.

THE BLACK ATHLETE SPORTS NETWORK'S ALL – HBC – UNIVERSE TEAM
By Michael – Louis Ingram
Black Athlete Sports Network/ Football Reporters Online
 
As we head into bowl season in college football and the NFL playoffs loom over the horizon, it's time to take a step back and recognize former and current players in a unique tribute.
For the past six months, I have been working on this compilation of talent for two specific reasons. One, when you refer to historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) on the gridiron, the first thought most lay people conjure up is that of Grambling State University.
The contributions by its great Hall of Fame coach and teacher, Eddie Robinson, are second to none; which brings us to the second reason: so that, respectfully, the world can know the HBCU universe does not rotate around the Black and Gold sun of Grambling State.
Every HBCU has long radiated its own special light, and their input into professional football's "Good Book of Bad" has so many "John Henrys" singing their names, it puts the Declaration of Independence to shame.
Now we know All – Star teams are always lightning rods for conversation; who was badder than whom and "How could you leave off this guy?" are about as expected as eight in the box on third and short.
But (with a lot of help from some friends and colleagues) we came up with not just a first, second and third team.
Because the dearth of talent coming from Black schools is so firmly etched in the fabric of pro football, we are unveiling the creation of 11 full All – Star teams; offense, defense and special teams complete with an all – Universe bench (taxi squad) which will ultimately bring you to those who we feel are the best of the very best – for an even dozen full squads in all.
My BASN colleagues, Editor – in – Chief, Tony McClean, my fellow Sports MCs Chris "Professor K" Murray and Wendell "MC Good Foot" Simpson and Finley "Doc" Pinkard, Big Play Football's main man Lloyd Vance, Staff Writer and host of Blog Talk Radio's hit talk show, "The Batchelor Pad" L.A. Batchelor, Dr. Bill Chachkes of footballreportersonline.com and some very special guests will chime in as they will also throw their two cents into the pot!
We will also roundtable on some of these picks and their worthiness in terms of consideration for the Pro Football Hall of Fame – in America and as well as our neighbor to the north and the Canadian Football Hall of Fame, located in Hamilton, Ontario.
 
THE BENCH:
The HBC – Universe bench is a 66 man – squad that was compiled of players who have played in every known professional sports league: NFL, CFL, the old American Football League, the Arena Football League, the United States Football League (USFL), the All – American Football Conference (AAFC), and NFL Europe (nee the World League of American Football).
A six – man "taxi squad" for each of the 11 teams with two significant selections, a bench coach and Honorary HBC – Universe member was chosen.
QBS: JOE "747" ADAMS, FLORIDA A&M; MATTHEW REED, GRAMBLING STATE; BRUCE EUGENE, GRAMBLING STATE; JOHNNIE WALTON, ELIZABETH CITY STATE; PARNELL DICKINSON, MISSISSIPPI VALLEY STATE; DAVE WEBSTER, PRAIRIE VIEW A&M;
(Super Scout's notes: Webster led Prairie View to the Black College Championship in 1958; Walton was a solid starter during his career in the USFL; Eugene's strong arm was matched and surpassed by his stronger intellect, as his 41 out of 42 on the ballyhooed Wunderlich test should have had him under center playing in the NFL if they were as consistent about what is required to play the position as their bullshit about who can't play the position)
RBS: PERRY HARRINGTON, JACKSON STATE; MIKE COLLIER, MORGAN STATE; HENRY DYER, GRAMBLING STATE; CLEO MILLER, ARKANSAS – PINE BLUFF; DERRICK NED; GRAMBLING STATE
(Super Scout's notes: Although Harrington never made significant waves in the NFL, he will always be remembered as the man who broke the great Walter Payton's rushing record at Jackson State)  
TE: CHAD FANN, FLORIDA A&M; THORTON CHANDLER, FLORIDA A&M; GREG LATTA, MORGAN STATE; MORRIS STROUD, CLARK ATLANTA; ALVIN REED, PRAIRIE VIEW A&M; CHARLEY FERGUSON, TENNESSEE STATE
(Super Scout's notes: Until the selection of seven foot lineman Richard Sligh by the Oakland Raiders, Stroud, at 6'10" was the tallest position player in the old AFL)
WRS: CHARLIE BROWN, SOUTH CAROLINA STATE; COREY BRADFORD, JACKSON STATE.;  DWIGHT SCALES, GRAMBLING STATE; SCOTTY ANDERSON, GRAMBLING STATE; NATE SINGLETON, GRAMBLING STATE
(Brown was a two – time Pro bowl receiver with Washington; Bradford was part of the expansion roster of the Houston Texans)
LINEMEN: QASIM MITCHELL, NORTH CAROLINA A&T; MIKE ST.CLAIR, GRAMBLING STATE; LAWRENCE TERO "MR.T", PRAIRIE VIEW A&M; BOOKER REESE, BETHUNE – COOKMAN; BENNIE ANDERSON, TENNESSEE STATE; KWAME KILPATRICK, FLORIDA A&M; DEXTER NOTTAGE, FLORIDA A&M; ELVIS FRANKS, MORGAN STATE; CHARTRIC DARBY, SOUTH CAROLINA STATE; FRANK MOLDEN, JACKSON STATE; BOB BROWN, ARKANSAS PINE – BLUFF; ELEX PRICE, ALCORN STATE; ROBERT "BIG BIRD" SMITH, GRAMBLING STATE; MARQUES DOUGLAS, HOWARD; CLETIDUS HUNT, KENTUCKY STATE; ROBERT MATHIS, ALABAMA A&M; ANTHONY COOK, SOUTH CAROLINA STATE; CLEVELAND ELAM, TENNESSEE STATE; CHARLES PHILYAW, TEXAS SOUTHERN; RUBEN STUDDARD, ARKANSAS PINE – BLUFF; MANNY SISTRUNK, ARKANSAS PINE - BLUFF
(A little mix of fame and infamy with the additions of Tero, Studdard and Kilpatrick; you decide what belongs to whom)
 
LBS: LOUIS GREEN, ALCORN STATE; SIMON SHANKS, TENNESSEE STATE; MARCUS WINN, ALABAMA STATE,; LES BARLEY, WINSTON – SALEM STATE; ROBERT TAYLOR, GRAMBLING STATE
DBS: FAKHIR BROWN, GRAMBLING STATE; GENE ATKINS, FLORIDA A&M; TONY STARGELL, TENNESSEE STATE; OLIVER CELESTIN, TEXAS SOUTHERN; RUFUS BESS, SOUTH CAROLINA STATE; GREG WESLEY, ARKANSAS PINE – BLUFF; DWAINE CARPENTER, NORTH CAROLINA A&T;ANTOINE BETHEA, HOWARD; MEDGAR EVERS, ALCORN STATE; TIM WATSON, HOWARD UNIVERSITY; TONY STARGELL, TENNESSEE STATE
(In addition to everything else in his brief but distinguished life, Evers excelled on the gridiron and ran track as a Brave)
STS: MIKE COLLIER, MORGAN STATE; CALVIN MUHAMMAD, TEXAS SOUTHERN; DARIAN BARNES, HAMPTON; ALPHONSE DOTSON, GRAMBLING STATE
BENCH COACHES: ERNEST JONES, ALCORN STATE; GEORGE RAGSDALE, NORTH CAROLINA A&T
HONORARY HBC – UNIVERSE CONTRIBUTOR: P/PK GENE MINGO*
*(I specifically wanted to honor Mingo because he was the first Black specialist to excel in football. In 1960, Mingo led the AFL in scoring his rookie season for the Denver Broncos, and as a placekicker/halfback and punt returner was a one – man scoring machine, leading the league in points scored in 1962.
Born in Ohio, Mingo's opting for military service may have taken college out of the equation, but not his desire to excel.)   
The Countdown      
 
For the teams, I went with a 26 – man roster, for offense, defense, specials and the head coach, applying the same variables as the bench, with extra consideration for league awards and longevity.
 
ELEVENTH TEAM
HEAD COACH – JAMES CARSON, JACKSON STATE
OFFENSE
QB - CONNELL MAYNOR, NORTH CAROLINA A&T
OL – DAMION COOK, BETHUNE – COOKMAN;
OL - COURTNEY VAN BUREN, ARKANSAS PINE – BLUFF;
OL – DWAYNE WHITE, ALCORN STATE;
OL - LAWRENCE SMITH, TENNESSEE STATE;
OL - JOHN BROWN, N. CAROLINA COLLEGE
TE – ALVIN REED, PRAIRIE VIEW A&M
WR – ALFRED JENKINS, MORRIS BROWN
WR – AL DENSON, FLORIDA A&M
RB – RONNIE COLEMAN, ALABAMA A&M
RB – LEWIS TILLMAN, JACKSON STATE
 
DEFENSE
DL – EZZRET ANDERSON, KENTUCKY STATE
DL – PEPPI ZELLNER, FORT VALLEY STATE
DL – JIM OSBORNE, SOUTHERN
DL – LAWRENCE PILLERS, ALCORN STATE
LB – MARLO PERRY, JACKSON STATE
LB – ISSAC KEYS, MOREHOUSE
LB – GUY PRATHER, GRAMBLING STATE
DB – FRANK WALKER, TUSKEGEE
DB – JAMES HUNTER, GRAMBLING STATE
DB – ISSAIC HOLT, ALCORN STATE
DB – NICK FERGUSON, MORRIS BROWN
 
SPECIALS
PK/P – CARLOS LEECH, SOUTHERN
KR – CARLOS PENNYWELL, GRAMBLING STATE
PR – WALLACE FRANCIS, ARKANSAS – PINE BLUFF
ST- CHRIS BURKETT, JACKSON STATE
 
Next Time: We roll with Teams #10 and #9; and if you think there's some great talent out here already, wait until we continue up the ladder to Number One!
 
michaelingram@blackathlete.com
mike@footballreportersonline.com

SEC Roundup
By Ralph Garcia SEC Insider-10-8-08

Vanderbilt 14 Auburn 13

As Vanderbilt took the field Saturday they looked around to find a packed house. Black and gold were everywhere the naked eye could see. The noise level was at pitch not heard here in decades. ESPN's College Gameday was here to hang out for the game. It was an official welcome to the big stage for the “Dores”. Only thing left was to go out on the field and get it done. Within a 60 second span it was 13-0 Tigers. Then at the end of the half Vandy scored to turn the momentum. In the second half Auburn would score no more. Their ever faltering spread offense could muster nothing. QB McKenzi Adams came off the bench to spark the comeback that put Vandy at 5-0 for the first time since 1943. They beat Auburn for the first time since 1955. Auburn was held to a little more than 200 yards of offense. Their QB's were sacked five times by five different players. Holding on to a one point lead with 2:16 to play Vandy had to punt. In came Brett Upson and his kick went 55 yards to the Tiger 3. One play later Myron Lewis picked off a Chris Todd pass and the celebration was on. A school known for its brain would now be recognized for its brawn. No longer are they be the doormat or joke of the SEC. Now they are wearing targets and other teams better take aim. This was for the long suffering fans, the boosters who never gave up, the fans that have been faithful for so long. Ah, but this is the SEC folks. The question of which conference is the best keeps being asked. If you watched Vandy's win then you should ask that question no more.

Elsewhere:
Tennessee 13 Northern Illinois 9
Nick Stephens goes 10-17 for 153 yards and a touchdown. The running game fell short with 75 yards on the ground. What was supposed to be a blowout almost ended in an upset. UT's offense could not move the ball and they better get it right soon.

Alabama 17 Kentucky 14

Glen Coffee ran for 218 yards but Alabama needs the late 24 yard field goal to get past Wildcats. Tide improves to 6-0.

S.C. 31 Ole Miss 24
QB Chris Smelley throws for a career high 327 yards go with three touchdowns. Rebels are held to a second half field goal. Crucial mistakes keep S.C. in East race.

Florida 38 Arakansas 7
AT&Tebow finishes 17-26 for 217 yards and two touchdowns to go along with an interception. Jeffrey Demps runs for 103 yards in the romp. Chris Rainey had a spectacular 75 yard run for a score. Win helps Gators stay half game behind East leader Vanderbilt.