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Still Badgering The jury is out on Wisconsin until conference playPosted: Thursday September 26, 2002 2:26 PM
Sports Illustrated senior writer Ivan Maisel will answer your college football questions every Thursday. Click here to send a question. This is the week to remind yourself why you love college football, because, frankly, the schedule of games is not going to do it. College football at the end of September is great because a lot of teams remain national championship contenders, conference play has barely begun, and, judging from your e-mails, at least a dozen people should appear on my three-place Heisman ballot. The Wisconsin offense has been a disappointment. Will Lee Evans make that much of a difference once he's 100-percent back from his knee injury? And what's wrong with the O-line? No holes for Anthony Davis, and Brooks Bollinger is getting killed (10 sacks by Northern Illinois). Was this team overrated, or is there still hope for a Big Ten run?
I've lost a lot of credibility the last few years underestimating the Badgers -- so why stop now? Seriously, I think Evans will make a difference, provided it's the Lee Evans who played last season and not a gimped-up Lee Evans who came back too fast in order to try and salvage his draft position. Now that we're into conference play, Wisconsin won't have the margin of error it had against Northern Illinois, Southwestern Arizona and the rest of that September schedule. I've thought for a while that Bollinger is overrated. But we're all just bumping our gums until Penn State comes to Madison on Oct. 5. That's when we get answers. Just wondering what your opinion is on Michigan quarterback John Navarre. Does he look like he's developing as he gains experience? I would appreciate an answer that doesn't just tell me I'm whining. Yes, the Wolverines should be 1-2. We have no one to blame but ourselves for the Notre Dame loss. The Washington game was a gift, but I'm greedy so I will take it. Michigan's play so far this year has been like a Clint Eastwood movie: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly.
All right, Mark, I'll make your day and not say you're whining. For a Few Dollars More, I might say Navarre is The Enforcer. You might consider Navarre Unforgiven, but Any Which Way You Can, you're going to pull for him when he's In the Line of Fire wearing maize and blue. And if I had the patience to download the Eastwood filmography, I could go on and on until we all throw up. I like Navarre's toughness. I wish he made faster decisions; I wish he had faster feet. Michigan doesn't have a gamebreaker. Braylon Edwards may become one, but he has to have a quarterback who can get him the ball. How good do you think Virginia Tech really is? I know the Hokies don't have much of a passing game (though Bryan Randall shows great poise and confidence), but opposing teams are in trouble unless they have a great run defense. The Hokies D and special teams are downright scary and probably won't be tested to their full potential until the end of the season at Miami. I'm not talking national champs this year, but this young team is going to be damn good for years to come and deserves more credit.
Virginia Tech proved it can conquer good running defenses by beating Texas A&M on the road 13-3. The Hokies are one of the five best teams in the nation. If Randall continues to develop, they will keep suspense in the Big East race until their Dec. 7 visit to Miami. At what point do you think Auburn coach Tommy Tuberville will realize that his team has enough talent to compete for the national title and quit settling for "coming out of the next four games at 3-1"? He has one of the top tailbacks in the nation, the best linebacking corps in the country and receivers galore, not to mention a top kicker in Damon Duval. What gives?
Might be the quarterback, Phillip. Auburn can't win a national championship with Daniel Cobb or Jason Campbell running the offense. Cadillac Williams is good, but tailbacks can't carry offenses these days. I'm a Seneca Wallace fan and like the way he plays, both on the ground and through the air. However, he seems to throw at least one interception per game. Do you think his tendency to throw picks will decrease his chances of winning the Heisman, even if he continues on his current pace?
If Wallace reaches the point where his record has to be sliced up and measured, you won't have a worry in the world. That means he will have led the Cyclones past Nebraska on Saturday, and he will have survived Iowa State's forced march of a schedule late in the season. In a span of five Saturdays, they play at Oklahoma, at Texas, at Kansas State and at Colorado (Hey, Big 12, nice scheduling). If Wallace emerges from that stretch and is still a Heisman candidate, then I promise you, the picks won't matter. I think you'd agree that Dan McCarney has done a great job resurrecting a football graveyard at Iowa State. I'm curious why he never seems to get much attention when bigger jobs come open. Do people not see his ability, or do I think too much of him since I'm a Cyclones fan?
Public perception is always a funny thing. If McCarney had won seven games in 2000 and nine in 2001, he would be considered a "hot" coach. Since those win totals are reversed, the buzz about McCarney is muted. However, Wallace is just the guy to depress the mute button. If the Cyclones challenge for the Big 12 North title this season, I imagine people will come a-courtin'. Wyoming head coach Vic Koenning is a really, really good guy, but he likely won't be head coach at UW next season. Who are some of the top assistants or small-college head coaches who are ready to move up to a D-1 head coaching position? And which of them might be willing to coach in Laramie?
All I know about Wyoming (besides the fact that my kids and I discovered a way-cool dinosaur museum on campus this summer) is that the program has a big winning tradition, and, as such, supporters will be less patient there than they may be at other Mountain West schools. Without regard to geography or their interest in Wyoming, here's a list of guys to keep an eye on: Bowling Green head coach Urban Meyer, USC offensive coordinator Norm Chow, Virginia Tech defensive coordinator Bud Foster and quarterbacks coach Kevin Rogers, South Carolina defensive coordinator Charlie Strong, LSU offensive coordinator Jimbo Fisher, and Georgia Tech offensive coordinator Bill O'Brien. Do you believe the Mountain West is establishing itself as a respectable national conference? Mountain West teams have done well in nonconference games this year, performing respectably even in losses. On a related note, why is Air Force, which regularly finishes in the Top 25, ignored in the preseason and often ranked outrageously low? Last year's struggle was a blip on Fisher DeBerry's very respectable record.
Air Force will be a good team until DeBerry retires. But the recruiting strictures placed on the Falcons by the school's entrance requirements, not to mention the post-degree service obligation will always hold them back. In the conference picture, BYU, Colorado State and Utah are good this year. But none is good enough to start this season's "Let's blow up the BCS" chant. How do you see Syracuse's season playing out? Though the Orangemen opened with losses to BYU and North Carolina, I think their first win, over Rhode Island, even though it was expected, will help them put together a successful season (seven or eight wins). How do you feel? Also, what do you think of true freshman tailback Damien Rhodes? I believe all the hype and think he's going to do wonders for the Orange. All they need is a good, consistent QB to complete their offense.
Forget eight wins. I think Syracuse is going to have to steal a road victory at Auburn this week to get to seven. With a finish of Virginia Tech-at Boston College-Miami, the Orangemen are looking at five losses. That leaves no margin of error between now and then. Rhodes impressed me against BYU, less so against North Carolina; Rhode Island, a Division I-AA school, doesn't really count. But admitting, as you did, that "all they need is a good, consistent QB ..." is an understatement, to say the least. In that offense, it's a necessity, and R.J. Anderson has not been consistent. Speculation in Boulder has Colorado quarterback Craig Ochs leaving the team for reasons other than the concussions. He reportedly may try to transfer after applying for a medical redshirt. Have you heard anything that would lead you to believe this may be true?
All I have heard is that his decision stunned the Colorado coaching staff. The fact that he dropped out of school and gave back his scholarship leads me to believe, as you suggest, that he is considering leaving Boulder. (Ed. note: On Wednesday Ochs reportedly requested a transfer to Montana, a Division I-AA school at which he will be eligible immediately.) How much longer can Tennessee wait to fire Phil Fulmer and his staff? Is the program salvageable?
Well, since Fulmer is second among active Division I-A coaches in winning percentage and is one of six active coaches (along with Larry Coker, Bob Stoops, Bobby Bowden, Lloyd Carr, Joe Paterno) who has won a national championship, Tennessee relented and decided to let him coach against Rutgers. And Brandon, please try not to play with matches, OK? You might hurt yourself. Heisman talkYou have got to be kidding me. After spending the past weekend witnessing the most spectacular catch a person can possibly make, I have no doubt that Charles Rogers is the best player in college football this year. Yet you still have no love for Chuck. Why is that? I had no idea that you were also on the overrated-quarterbacks bandwagon. We all know that Michigan State is nowhere near as good as Miami or Florida. But the Heisman is an individual award. Is there another individual who helps his team more than Rogers? Doubt it. So maybe next week when you do your little list you will forget about the freshman and forget about the cocky swagger of an overrated quarterback and focus more on a true superstar.
Rogers had a career game against Notre Dame. You can write his name on the Biletnikoff Award right now. To win the Heisman, you have to win more than eight games, unless you're at Notre Dame (see: Tim Brown, 1987, 8-4). Unlike Brown, Rogers doesn't return kicks. To win the Heisman, you have to touch the ball more than seven or eight times a game. When will the typical "I don't really watch college football" fan get off Ken Dorsey's back? Ken Dorsey is 30-1 as a starter, he has led Miami to two bowl wins and a national title, he was Rose Bowl MVP ... and people still want to say he's an average player on a great team? You cannot lose one game as a starting quarterback and be average. He has the horses around him now, no doubt, but it takes someone really special to lead a team to a national championship and so many consecutive wins. I would take a quarterback who is a proven winner before I'd take one who might have a better throwing arm but can't win the big game.
Jason, I don't blame you for raising 'Cane. There are as many opinions about Dorsey as there are writers with laptops. I have given him the benefit of my doubts about his talents. No question he is one of the smartest college quarterbacks in this or any season. He's also not especially quick and his arm is good, but not great. That said, as the season moves forward and other players continue to put up remarkable numbers, I'll be surprised if I keep listing Dorsey No. 1 on my Heisman Watch. You have some darkhorses in this latest Heisman Watch, but you need to check out Derek Anderson of Oregon State. He has many of the qualities of the all the listed candidates, but better numbers: 12 touchdowns, zero interceptions, almost 1,000 yards passing. If you count some of these other guys, why not Anderson?
I do need to check out Anderson. My colleague Austin Murphy saw him play against Fresno State and was very impressed. I'm sure as conference play begins in the Pac-10, the word about Anderson will spread. How can you not have Willis McGahee in your top five for the Heisman? He is averaging 133.3 yards a game and has seven TDs on the ground, plus he is gaining 32 yards a game through the air. I know that Ken Dorsey is going to get a lot of credit, but when you have a tailback who averages 165 all-purpose yards and two scores, it's makes it a little easier to throw the ball downfield.
I am tempted to put in McGahee and take out Dorsey (see above). Without a frontrunner in the race, we're going to see a lot of players mentioned for the Heisman. It should be the best race in years. How does your list of Heisman candidates fail to include Zack Mills of Penn State? Mills has a rare blend of passing skills and great running ability, and he has assumed the role of a field general who comfortably leads his team.
I love Mills, but I'm more drawn to his leadership and intangible skills than to his numbers. As I said above, there are going to be a lot of players with outstanding stats. That doesn't bode well for Mills as a Heisman or All-America candidate. Sports Illustrated senior writer Ivan Maisel covers college football for the magazine and is a regular contributor to CNNSI.com. Click here to send him a question or comment.
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