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Finally hooked Longhorns proving too tempting to keep down
Dear loyal Beat readers, Just a reminder on behalf of both myself and the Web site, that, when e-mailing comments and suggestions, it's always good to keep the obscenities to a minimum. No one likes a potty mouth, not to mention you're dealing with a sensitive human being here. You know, this isn't some college football-crazed robot writing these things. The timing of this disclaimer is no accident, as it comes with an announcement that, effective immediately, this writer has officially taken "the plunge." After careful consideration -- and against better judgment -- I have decided to elevate the Texas Longhorns to No. 2 in my preseason Top 25. It's anticipated they will remain there, barring unforeseen circumstances (injuries; elimination of the quarterback position in college football), as part of a likely Florida-UT Rose Bowl prediction come August. I do this realizing full well from your e-mails that, headed into the 2001 season, no team in the country has more "haters" than Texas. Americans of all age and creed are united in their belief that, if you're going to receive as much hype as Mack Brown's crew has these past few years, you're expected to live up to it. Fancy that. In fact, the mere suggestion that Bevo could start the season ranked higher than the pack of Ducks that beat him in last December's Holiday Bowl has been enough to make the entire state of Oregon more agitated than Rasheed Wallace at a refs convention. "As our program continues to evolve, it's extremely important for us not to allow preseason expectations to get into our head, like I'm afraid it did some last year," Brown said in the spring. "Certainly, we want to be a well-respected program, and with that comes continued high expectations. But ultimately, preseason expectations don't matter." While secure in my conviction about the Gators' claim to No. 1, I've never felt quite right about the customary Oklahoma or Miami pick for numero duo. And with the early preview magazines hitting the shelf and my mind tuned to such matters more than usual, it finally hit me: Why not Texas?
Sure, the Sooners are the defending national champs, but the idea of OU making another title run without their undisputed heart and soul of the past two seasons, Josh Heupel, doesn't seem plausible. And amidst all the gawking over the mini-NFL combine brewing in Coral Gables, it seems many of us have been overlooking the fact the 'Canes must travel to State College, Tallahassee and Blacksburg this year as well as play host to Washington. Someone smells two losses. The scheduling gods have been far kinder to Texas. In fact, on paper, outside of their annual Dallas showdown with the Sooners, it's hard to envision the Horns being anything but overwhelming favorites in their other 10 games. No Nebraska or Kansas State. Texas Tech and Colorado come to Austin. A&M is going to be down. Heck, their only back-to-back road games conveniently involve Missouri and Baylor. Oooooooh. Of course, UT hasn't exactly been immune to the upset (N.C. State, Arkansas, Stanford) these past couple years. And therein lies the dilemma. The haunting voice of warning is calling out from deep within: "Build them up, and they will choke." Believe me, I know. I know, I know, I know. And yet, I find them impossible to resist. Those receivers, Roy Williams and B.J. Johnson -- sooooo fast, so not freshmen anymore. The golden boy, Chris Simms, finally the undisputed starter, will be throwing to them. Cedric Benson, the superhero from Midland, coming to provide that backfield threat missing since the days of Ricky Williams. Cory Redding, a beast of a defensive end, and De'Andre Lewis, a Butkus candidate linebacker, anchoring the front seven. And veterans Quentin Jammer and Roderick Babers in the secondary. Not even Mack could screw this one up ... right? The arguments against the Horns start with poster boy Simms, quite possibly the first quarterback in history to garner Heisman candidacy despite throwing more interceptions (11) than TDs (eight) the year before. Let's just say that No. 2 comes with a hunch that Simms will more often duplicate what he did against Texas A&M (16-of-24, 383 yards, 3 TDs, 0 INTs) than Oregon (17-of-33, 245 yards, 0 TDs, 4 INTs). And if not, oh well, bring in the "backup," Major Applewhite. Also, the defense did lose tackle tandem Casey Hampton and Shaun Rogers to the pros. But what team doesn't have questions in the middle of June? Am I fully confident this ranking will last the test of time? Of course not, but I will say this: Among the prognostications I found in my first quick perusal of several preseason mags -- Mississippi State No. 8 in the whole country (not just SEC country); Drew Henson -less Michigan No. 7; and USC (no, not South Carolina) No. 14. Compared with such apparently substance-induced statements as these, the Offseason Beat should look like Nostradamus come January.
Harrington hits Big AppleWhile we've become accustomed to the annual war of extravagance among Heisman promotional campaigns, Oregon has pretty much destroyed all comers for this year. With help from private donors, the school ponied up $250,000 to place a 100-by-80 foot poster of QB Joey Harrington on a building at the corner of 34th and 7th in New York City, across from Madison Square Garden. (Contrary to some reports, Nike CEO and UO alum Phil Knight was not involved.) The graffiti inscription replaces "Harrington" with "Heisman." While we're guessing 99 percent of the millions of expected passer-bys this summer will have no clue why they're looking at a player from Oregon, there's no mistaking the target audience: East Coast media. "I think it's great and I think it's absolutely necessary if you want to give a West Coast player a legitimate chance to contend for something like the Heisman," coach Mike Bellotti told the Eugene Register Guard. Meanwhile Harrington, known to be as humble as humanly possible, traveled to New York last week for the unveiling and met with several national publications. "Everyone should keep it in perspective," cautioned Harrington, who is 14-2 as a starter. "A billboard isn't going to help us win more games."
Worth notingTime is running out on the organizers of the Aug. 26 BCA Bowl, who have yet to find someone willing to host pesky Southern Miss. Kansas State, Oregon and Michigan have all passed, though the Wildcats say they're still interested in adding a 12th game. ... Tennessee coach Phil Fulmer is expected to dismiss budding defensive star Lynn McGruder, who is charged with manufacturing and selling marijuana out of his dorm room. ... Kentucky received another blow last week when two-year starting linebacker Ryan Murphy was declared academically eligible, ending his career. ... Dave Kennedy, credited for helping develop many of Ohio State's NFL stars during 12 years as strength and conditioning coach, abruptly resigned last month with nine years remaining on a 10-year contract. Coach Jim Tressel responded by hiring away 13-year veteran Allan Johnson from West Virginia. CNNSI.com's Stewart Mandel will offer his latest Offseason Beat notes regularly from now till Kickoff 2001. If you have questions, comments, ideas or scoops for the Beat, click here.
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