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Independents overview

Notre Dame needs strong year, for Davie's sake

By Stan Crawley, Special to CNNSI.com

Julius Jones led Notre Dame in kick returns and all-purpose yards as a freshman. Mark Lyons/Allsport

Order of Finish 1. Notre Dame 2. Central Florida 3. Louisiana Tech 4. Navy 5. Louisiana-Monroe 6. Middle Tennessee State 7. Louisiana-Lafayette 8. Connecticut

Top Storylines

Four independents have found new homes for the 2001 college football season. Louisiana Tech will join the WAC, while Louisiana-Lafayette, Middle Tennessee State and Louisiana-Monroe will become members of the Sun Belt. Central Florida wants to be referred to as UCF from now on. The school's administration believes the new moniker makes it more marketable. Louisiana Tech's Tim Rattay now belongs to the San Francisco 49ers and will be replaced at quarterback by Brian Stallworth, who threw for 476 yards last year. Navy quarterback Brian Madden tore the ACL and MCL in his right knee near the end of the spring game and his playing status for 2000 is uncertain.

Where They'll Be for the Holidays
BCS Blessed	Dot-Com Doomed	Confined to Couch
None	Notre Dame Central Florida	Louisiana Tech Navy Louisiana-Monroe Middle Tennessee State Louisiana-Lafayette Connecticut

Best of All Worlds

Quarterback

Central Florida Vic Penn

Running Backs

Notre Dame Tony Fisher, Julius Jones, Terrance Howard

Ends

Central Florida Kenny Clark, Tyson Hinshaw

Offensive Line

Notre Dame Jordan Black, Mike Gandy, Jim Jones, John Teasdale, Jeff Faine

Defensive Line

Notre Dame Anthony Weaver, Grant Irons, Darrell Campbell, Lance Legree

Linebackers

Notre Dame Rocky Boiman, Anthony Denman, Tyreo Harrison

Secondary

Notre Dame Tony Driver, Brock Williams, Clifford Jefferson, Ron Israel

Special Teams

Notre Dame Julius Jones, Joey Hildbold, Nick Setta

Coaching

Notre Dame Bob Davie, Kevin Rogers, Greg Mattison

Status Report

Set to Go Skygliding

Notre Dame Although the schedule is a killer, the Irish want to help coach Bob Davie save his job.

Set to Go Cliffdiving

Connecticut As the Huskies will soon discover, it's tough moving into Division I-A.

About to Step Up

Ryan Tracey, QB, Connecticut Quarterback signee from Citrus (Calif.) Community College moved to No. 1 on the depth chart in the spring.

Hasn't Stepped Up Yet

David Givens, WR, Notre Dame The junior caught only 14 passes for 187 yards and one touchdown last year.

Schedules

Brutal Schedule

Notre Dame The Irish open the season against Texas A&M, Nebraska and Purdue at home before traveling to Michigan State. Also on the schedule are Stanford, Navy, West Virginia, Air Force, Boston College, Rutgers and USC.

Breather Schedule

Louisiana-Monroe The Indians do have to travel to Tennessee, but the rest of their schedule is dotted with the likes of Nicholls State, Southwest Texas and Wofford.

Mark Your Calendar

Texas A&M at Notre Dame, Sept. 2 This intersectional matchup is a great way to start the 2000 season. Nebraska at Notre Dame, Sept. 9 A classic the second week of the season, especially if Notre Dame beats Texas A&M. Navy vs. Army, Dec. 2 The tradition-filled series continues in 2000.

Stan Crawley is a freelance college sports writer based in Chattanooga, Tenn.

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