DTs Dandy Dozen - College Football Crystal Ball Prognostications

[Guest DT]

1. Ryan Day is not long for Ohio State.  Every NFL team would love to have him as their head coach.  Id be surprised if he is not off to the pros within a season or two.

2. Oklahoma's ride atop the Big 12 is ending.  The ugly loss to LSU will send a sour signal to fans, boosters, recruits, Oklahoma high school coaches, etc.  Despite all the changes in player and staff personnel, OU still has not fixed its defensive problems.  Baylor is sitting in the wings ready to take control of this conference, and Texas will be Texas again sooner rather than later.  There is a big OU hangover settling over Big 12 territory.  Boomer Sooner has done a poor job representing the conference, and Lincoln Riley has once again been exposed as a one dimensional coach, damaging his NFL aspirations.

3. Greg Schiano has Rutgers nation on fire and the Scarlet Nights will take quick aim at Indiana and Maryland as they look to get out of the Big Ten East basement.  I see the Rutgers rebuild under Schiano happening rather quickly.  Look for NJ 4 star recruits to start spurning Penn State and other blue bloods as they drink the Schiano kool aid and aspire to play for their home state school.  

4. The PAC 12 continues to slide.  Iowa totally embarrassed USC in the Holiday bowl and Chris Petersen's departure could mean trouble for Washington.  Outside of Utah, very few programs are trending up in this conference.  California's top recruits are bailing on the Golden State and heading for SEC country.  The leagues best coach, Davis Shaw at Stanford, is being heavily pursued by NFL teams.  Look for Mike Leach at Washington State to bail out soon.  

5. Arkansas and Missouri just changed head coaches.  Did anybody notice, or does anybody even care?  Its getting more difficult for these types of programs to compete when they are getting such poor results on the recruiting trail.  There's only so much you can do with 2 and 3 star leftovers that haven't been picked over by the better schools.  By the way, the new coaches are household names Sam Pittman at Arkie and Eli Drinkwitz at Mizzou?

6. Is it too late for Charlie Spegal to bail on his IU PWO and switch to Air Force?  CS would be a star at the Academy given their ground oriented rushing attack and quick hitting runs between the guards, Spegal's specialty.

7. There is something about James Franklin that is just not right.  Let me know when you figure it out.  By the way, Franklin's post game tackle of his own linebacker following a Gatorade bath was epic. 

https://247sports.com/Article/James-Franklin-form-tackles-Cam-Brown-after-Gatorade-bath-Penn-State-Nittany-Lions-Cotton-Bowl-Memphis-Tigers-Football-141193196/

8. Does Ed Orgeron have the coolest voice ever or what?

https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2019/12/26/ed-orgeron-voice-lsu-football/

9.  Did you notice in many of the bowl games how the cameras go to great lengths not to show the empty upper decks in many stadiums across the country?  The non playoff games are quickly sliding into total irrelevance.  They must be losing a ton of money.  Maybe ESPN will pull back on TV coverage of many of these meaningless games and we ill drop back to 15 bowl games instead of 40.  Its just ridiculous.

10.  Austin Mack and Pete Werner had solid games for the Buckeyes against Clemson.  Werner still looks like a strong safety to me.  Hard to believe he weighs 230.  He looks more like 210.  Mack looked like an NFL receiver .  

11. Iowa gets no respect, and that's just the way they like it.  Just float below the radar and don't do anything fancy.  The Hawks have been sneaking into Indiana and stealing top recruits annually now for several years.  

https://www.scout.com/Season/2020-Football/RecruitRankings/?InstitutionGroup=HighSchool&State=IN

12.  I was thrilled to see Mack Brown win a bowl game for North Carolina.  The Heels had a nice comeback season under Brown at 7-6 and have great recruiting momentum against rivals NC State, Wake and South Carolina

It will be UNC that rises up to challenge Clemson in The ACC.  

 

 

 

 

Edited December 29, 2019 by DT

[Bobref]

No love for the Irish? I know they have fallen short against the very elite recently. But they’ve won 33 games in the last 3 seasons and not many Power 5 programs can say that.

[Guest DT]

18 minutes ago, Bobref said:

No love for the Irish? I know they have fallen short against the very elite recently. But they’ve won 33 games in the last 3 seasons and not many Power 5 programs can say that.

The Irish have been rather boring and nondescript as of late. These late season conference games are important for playoff positioning.  ND just not in the mix.  

Perhaps when ND gets pushed closer to regular season irrelevance they will be forced to reconsider full conference affiliation.  Rivals USC and Stanford are not helping the Irish either.

[BTF]

16 hours ago, DT said:

1. Ryan Day is not long for Ohio State.  Every NFL team would love to have him as their head coach.  Id be surprised if he is not off to the pros within a season or two.

He seems pretty happy at OSU and motivated to get a championship. My gut tells me he'll be there for awhile.

16 hours ago, DT said:

6. Is it too late for Charlie Spegal to bail on his IU PWO and switch to Air Force?  CS would be a star at the Academy given their ground oriented rushing attack and quick hitting runs between the guards, Spegal's specialty.

I agree, he could be a star at Air Force. But he REALLY wants to be a Hoosier! Go get 'em Charlie!

16 hours ago, DT said:

7. There is something about James Franklin that is just not right.  Let me know when you figure it out.  By the way, Franklin's post game tackle of his own linebacker following a Gatorade bath was epic. 

He did a great job of getting Penn State out of the gutter. He just seems to have a hard time getting them to the playoff level.

 

16 hours ago, DT said:

9.  Did you notice in many of the bowl games how the cameras go to great lengths not to show the empty upper decks in many stadiums across the country?  The non playoff games are quickly sliding into total irrelevance.  They must be losing a ton of money.  Maybe ESPN will pull back on TV coverage of many of these meaningless games and we ill drop back to 15 bowl games instead of 40.  Its just ridiculous.

Not many who wanted to watch ND vs Iowa State or Penn State vs Memphis. I don't even remember who Florida's got, that shows how much I care. How about a match-up between ND, Florida, and Penn State. Sell-out crowd and good for ratings. But I get it. The bowls have affiliations with the conferences and their hands are tied. 

16 hours ago, DT said:

11. Iowa gets no respect, and that's just the way they like it.  Just float below the radar and don't do anything fancy.  The Hawks have been sneaking into Indiana and stealing top recruits annually now for several years.  

They are two or three four star athletes from being a playoff contender. Who wouldn't want to play for Kirk Ferentz? Great guy!

[BTF]

16 hours ago, Bobref said:

No love for the Irish? I know they have fallen short against the very elite recently. But they’ve won 33 games in the last 3 seasons and not many Power 5 programs can say that.

I can't speak for DT, but there are just too many ND haters out there. It's common knowledge. You either love 'em or you hate 'em. Notre Dame is one of the top programs in the country whether you like it or not. 

[Guest DT]

1 hour ago, BTF said:

I can't speak for DT, but there are just too many ND haters out there. It's common knowledge. You either love 'em or you hate 'em. Notre Dame is one of the top programs in the country whether you like it or not. 

I am completely neutral on ND.  As an IU fan, I pull for Michigan and the Big Ten against ND, and I pull for the Irish against USC and most everyone else.  

[Guest]

18 hours ago, DT said:

1. Ryan Day is not long for Ohio State.  Every NFL team would love to have him as their head coach.  Id be surprised if he is not off to the pros within a season or two.

2. Oklahoma's ride atop the Big 12 is ending.  The ugly loss to LSU will send a sour signal to fans, boosters, recruits, Oklahoma high school coaches, etc.  Despite all the changes in player and staff personnel, OU still has not fixed its defensive problems.  Baylor is sitting in the wings ready to take control of this conference, and Texas will be Texas again sooner rather than later.  There is a big OU hangover settling over Big 12 territory.  Boomer Sooner has done a poor job representing the conference, and Lincoln Riley has once again been exposed as a one dimensional coach, damaging his NFL aspirations.

3. Greg Schiano has Rutgers nation on fire and the Scarlet Nights will take quick aim at Indiana and Maryland as they look to get out of the Big Ten East basement.  I see the Rutgers rebuild under Schiano happening rather quickly.  Look for NJ 4 star recruits to start spurning Penn State and other blue bloods as they drink the Schiano kool aid and aspire to play for their home state school.  

4. The PAC 12 continues to slide.  Iowa totally embarrassed USC in the Holiday bowl and Chris Petersen's departure could mean trouble for Washington.  Outside of Utah, very few programs are trending up in this conference.  California's top recruits are bailing on the Golden State and heading for SEC country.  The leagues best coach, Davis Shaw at Stanford, is being heavily pursued by NFL teams.  Look for Mike Leach at Washington State to bail out soon.  

5. Arkansas and Missouri just changed head coaches.  Did anybody notice, or does anybody even care?  Its getting more difficult for these types of programs to compete when they are getting such poor results on the recruiting trail.  There's only so much you can do with 2 and 3 star leftovers that haven't been picked over by the better schools.  By the way, the new coaches are household names Sam Pittman at Arkie and Eli Drinkwitz at Mizzou?

6. Is it too late for Charlie Spegal to bail on his IU PWO and switch to Air Force?  CS would be a star at the Academy given their ground oriented rushing attack and quick hitting runs between the guards, Spegal's specialty.

7. There is something about James Franklin that is just not right.  Let me know when you figure it out.  By the way, Franklin's post game tackle of his own linebacker following a Gatorade bath was epic. 

https://247sports.com/Article/James-Franklin-form-tackles-Cam-Brown-after-Gatorade-bath-Penn-State-Nittany-Lions-Cotton-Bowl-Memphis-Tigers-Football-141193196/

8. Does Ed Orgeron have the coolest voice ever or what?

https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2019/12/26/ed-orgeron-voice-lsu-football/

9.  Did you notice in many of the bowl games how the cameras go to great lengths not to show the empty upper decks in many stadiums across the country?  The non playoff games are quickly sliding into total irrelevance.  They must be losing a ton of money.  Maybe ESPN will pull back on TV coverage of many of these meaningless games and we ill drop back to 15 bowl games instead of 40.  Its just ridiculous.

10.  Austin Mack and Pete Werner had solid games for the Buckeyes against Clemson.  Werner still looks like a strong safety to me.  Hard to believe he weighs 230.  He looks more like 210.  Mack looked like an NFL receiver .  

11. Iowa gets no respect, and that's just the way they like it.  Just float below the radar and don't do anything fancy.  The Hawks have been sneaking into Indiana and stealing top recruits annually now for several years.  

https://www.scout.com/Season/2020-Football/RecruitRankings/?InstitutionGroup=HighSchool&State=IN

12.  I was thrilled to see Mack Brown win a bowl game for North Carolina.  The Heels had a nice comeback season under Brown at 7-6 and have great recruiting momentum against rivals NC State, Wake and South Carolina

It will be UNC that rises up to challenge Clemson in The ACC.  

 

 

 

 

DT:

First off, THANKS for providing some quality content where we football enthusiasts can chime in.  You take a lot of heat but much of it is unwarranted.

As a college football nut, here are my thoughts:

1. Ryan Day is not long for Ohio State.  Every NFL team would love to have him as their head coach.  Id be surprised if he is not off to the pros within a season or two.

I sorta agree.  I think he is out of Columbus, just not as quickly as you think.  He is an elite play caller without a doubt but many folks tend to fall into the trap that the NFL is this utopia that all coaches should strive for when that is simply not the case.  Guys like Spurrier and Saban tried and failed.  The NFL has a short leash whereas him staying in Columbus makes him a king as he is guaranteed to win double figure games annually based on talent alone.

2. Oklahoma's ride atop the Big 12 is ending.  The ugly loss to LSU will send a sour signal to fans, boosters, recruits, Oklahoma high school coaches, etc.  Despite all the changes in player and staff personnel, OU still has not fixed its defensive problems.  Baylor is sitting in the wings ready to take control of this conference, and Texas will be Texas again sooner rather than later.  There is a big OU hangover settling over Big 12 territory.  Boomer Sooner has done a poor job representing the conference, and Lincoln Riley has once again been exposed as a one dimensional coach, damaging his NFL aspirations.

I'm also not sure I agree here.  I don't see a program that can challenge Oklahoma CONSISTENTLY atop the Big 12.  We were told Texas was "back" last year after beating an uninterested Georgia team in the NY6. Like Tennessee in the other thread, I have been hearing about the "return of Texas" for too long now to be a believer. Iowa State and Baylor are temporary stops for Campell and Ruhle.  They are not destination jobs, so they will not be there long enough to build annual powerhouses.  Riley will still get his chance somewhere else and, for now, an elite offense is all it takes to win in that league.

3. Greg Schiano has Rutgers nation on fire and the Scarlet Nights will take quick aim at Indiana and Maryland as they look to get out of the Big Ten East basement.  I see the Rutgers rebuild under Schiano happening rather quickly.  Look for NJ 4 star recruits to start spurning Penn State and other blue bloods as they drink the Schiano kool aid and aspire to play for their home state school.  

I disagreed here at first but have one foot on board.  New Jersey is a hotbed of talent so if Schiano can get some of the second tier players to stay home, they can build a decent outfit.  Locksley at Maryland just locked up (pun intended) a five star WR and will continue to recruit at a fairly elite level as his DMV connections will keep Maryland afloat.  As far as Indiana is concerned, I never was a big believer in Allen until this year.  Though Indiana may have the least quality 8 wins in America, they beat who they should have, which is huge progress for the Hoosiers.  The problem with the three programs above is that they are in college football purgatory as they play in the second toughest division in America and will never get up that mountain.

4. The PAC 12 continues to slide.  Iowa totally embarrassed USC in the Holiday bowl and Chris Petersen's departure could mean trouble for Washington.  Outside of Utah, very few programs are trending up in this conference.  California's top recruits are bailing on the Golden State and heading for SEC country.  The leagues best coach, Davis Shaw at Stanford, is being heavily pursued by NFL teams.  Look for Mike Leach at Washington State to bail out soon. 

I hate to admit this, but the worst thing for the Pac 12 was Oregon's loss to Auburn back in August.  It did not end up burying the conference as the Ducks' loss to Arizona State sealed their fate, but the Pac 12 conference champ losing to the eventual 4-5th best team in the SEC was noticed nationally.  You talk a lot about the "investment" that certain programs have in football playing a factor at the high school level, but it is also evident on the west coast too.  Lots of empty seats in Pac 12 country this fall.  Love Shaw and Leach but college football is a midwest/southeastern sport and other programs from those areas will come calling soon.

5. Arkansas and Missouri just changed head coaches.  Did anybody notice, or does anybody even care?  Its getting more difficult for these types of programs to compete when they are getting such poor results on the recruiting trail.  There's only so much you can do with 2 and 3 star leftovers that haven't been picked over by the better schools.  By the way, the new coaches are household names Sam Pittman at Arkie and Eli Drinkwitz at Mizzou?

These two programs are also in purgatory, SEC purgatory.  They'll have to go the Ole Miss (cheat your tail off) route to build for a run 1-2 times per decade.  The problem is then, you go back to the bottom and have to rebuild again.  Ole Miss just hired the perfect guy to get back to their "ways" which will result in a couple of 9 win seasons in the future.

6. Is it too late for Charlie Spegal to bail on his IU PWO and switch to Air Force?  CS would be a star at the Academy given their ground oriented rushing attack and quick hitting runs between the guards, Spegal's specialty.

I thought I was the only pathetic soul watching the "Cheez It Bowl" on Friday night at midnight but there is something about a perfectly executed old school triple option offense that just sucks me in.  I won't pretend to know what is best for a kid that I don't know but as a Hoosier resident, him staying at IU will at least mean we get to see the story unfold right in front of our eyes.

7. There is something about James Franklin that is just not right.  Let me know when you figure it out.  By the way, Franklin's post game tackle of his own linebacker following a Gatorade bath was epic. 

Franklin is a phenomenal recruiter that is changing PSU's manta from "linebacker U" to "running back U".  They are rolling out elite talent at the tailback position year in and year out.  Barkley, Sanders, Slade, Brown, and Cain are ALL next level players which has kept them in the Big Ten East elite tier.  He does rub me the wrong way socially though as he seems a bit arrogant and fake at times.  His in-game decision making leaves a lot to be desired as he makes some questionable game day calls to say the least.  Punting inside your opponents' 40 on 4th and 1/2, calling/leaving timeouts in your pocket at inopportune times.  I once saw his team get stopped on 3rd and long on his opponents 40 yard line with under a minute to go in the first half...he proceeded to frantically call a timeout to save clock as if his team were going to go for it...and they punted.  It was a touch back and the other team drove the field a kicked a FG before halftime.

8. Does Ed Orgeron have the coolest voice ever or what?

Yes, little did we know the "Water Boy" movie was ahead of its time.

9.  Did you notice in many of the bowl games how the cameras go to great lengths not to show the empty upper decks in many stadiums across the country?  The non playoff games are quickly sliding into total irrelevance.  They must be losing a ton of money.  Maybe ESPN will pull back on TV coverage of many of these meaningless games and we ill drop back to 15 bowl games instead of 40.  Its just ridiculous.

Yes, its now playoff or bust for teams 5-130, which stinks.  Many of these bowl games come down to who cares more.  That being said, as a football nut, if its on, I will watch it.  So I guess I am part of the problem.  December sucks from a sport's fans perspective as baseball is over, the NBA is a drag and college basketball is still in non conference play.  I'll take football wherever I can get it but see your point.

10.  Austin Mack and Pete Werner had solid games for the Buckeyes against Clemson.  Werner still looks like a strong safety to me.  Hard to believe he weighs 230.  He looks more like 210.  Mack looked like an NFL receiver .  

No opinion.  Go blue.

11. Iowa gets no respect, and that's just the way they like it.  Just float below the radar and don't do anything fancy.  The Hawks have been sneaking into Indiana and stealing top recruits annually now for several years.  

Like Franklin, Ferentz is a phenomenal recruiter but does so with less to sell as Iowa is not on PSU's level in terms of an available talent hotbed or tradition/history.  He is also a conservative "punt and play defense" sort of coach more often than not which was why I was SHOCKED by their game plan which sliced and diced USC.  His son, Brian, looks to be the coach in waiting and if they can continue to build their offensive playbook and recruit at their current level, they will be a factor more often than not.  The Big Ten West is wide open for the next decade.  The problem is, they always seem to have 1-2 head scratching losses per year.  Their ability to win 9-10 games (which is their usual ceiling) will come down to who the crossovers are against in the Big Ten East.

12.  I was thrilled to see Mack Brown win a bowl game for North Carolina.  The Heels had a nice comeback season under Brown at 7-6 and have great recruiting momentum against rivals NC State, Wake and South Carolina

It will be UNC that rises up to challenge Clemson in The ACC.  

Though I will agree that UNC might rise to annually be #2 in the ACC, they'll never challenge Clemson annually.  They'll do enough to give the Tigers a game every 2-3 years and might spring an upset or two (though I am not sure how many coaching years Mack has left).  #2 in the ACC is nothing to really write home about though as it is nearly MAC level quality beyond Clemson these days.  Miami looked lost, Wake lost to the NINTH best team in the Big Ten,  and UVA is going to get curb stomped in Miami tonight.

[Guest]

1 hour ago, BTF said:

I can't speak for DT, but there are just too many ND haters out there. It's common knowledge. You either love 'em or you hate 'em. Notre Dame is one of the top programs in the country whether you like it or not. 

I would never admit this to my friends, but my dislike for ND has diminished over the past few years.  They do things the right way and still find a way to compete.  Stated elsewhere that I am a Michigan fan so not playing them annually diminishes my dislike for them.  Now, I do think that their win totals the past two seasons have been inflated as USC, Stanford and FSU are in down periods but that's not necessarily their fault. 

I do think they need to move to the ACC though as they could compete against Clemson annually and get some credibility.

[BTF]

8 hours ago, Temptation said:

I would never admit this to my friends, but my dislike for ND has diminished over the past few years.  They do things the right way and still find a way to compete.  Stated elsewhere that I am a Michigan fan so not playing them annually diminishes my dislike for them.  Now, I do think that their win totals the past two seasons have been inflated as USC, Stanford and FSU are in down periods but that's not necessarily their fault. 

I do think they need to move to the ACC though as they could compete against Clemson annually and get some credibility.

Actually, Clemson should defect and go to the SEC or Big Ten. But why would they? They are pretty much guaranteed an undefeated season in the ACC. All they have to do is blow out their opponents in impressive fashion and the playoffs will come calling.

If ND does ever join a conference, I hope it's the Big Ten. But then they'd have move ALL sports over from the ACC. Who knows what the future will hold. Will probably remain independent. Now, if they lose at home next year in a close game to Clemson (figuring that's their only loss) and still miss the playoffs, then a move toward conference affiliation will be taken seriously. 

Next year they'll have their opportunity against Wisconsin at Lambeau and at home against Clemson. Hopefully Stanford and USC improve next season. 

 

[Coach Nowlin]

Rhule getting the Carolina Panther job could hurt them in the moment, but do not see them falling completely apart, not sure if Bears have a guy to promote within.