2001 SEC Forecast

SEC East

1. Florida
2. Tennessee
3. South Carolina
4. Georgia
5. Vanderbilt
6. Kentucky

SEC West

1. LSU
2. Alabama
3. MSU
4. Arkansas
5. Auburn
6. Ole Miss

2001 SEC West Preview

Not to bring up bad memories, but anyone remember 1998?

A pre-season ranking of #8, expectations of an SEC West Title, whispers of a possible run at a National Championship. We'll never do that again! Or will we? Let's get one thing straight; LSU fans are about as unrealistic as everyone else. With the emergence of Bob Stoops and his success at Oklahoma after only two years at the helm, alumni, donors and fans want WINS....IMMEDIATELY.

So what is a coach to do? Sign a big FAT contract with a large buyout and hope some 18 and 20 year olds make a few critical plays each game to keep him off the hot seat. LSU is ranked in the teens in many of the preseason journals, lofty expectations for a program still trying to recapture the glory years of the late 50's and 60's when LSU dominated the SEC. But all the pieces are there for LSU to make a serious run at the SEC West.

LSU is a match for any team in the conference at the skill positions on offense. The O-Line will be the real question this season. On defense, LSU fields, in my mind, the best LB corps in the country. Faulk, James and Lawrence fly to the ball and all have a knack for making plays. The comparisons to 1998 may be unfair for the simple fact that this staff is still intact (both coordinators return) and the players will have two years under this system. The leadership and continuity are there, but the Tigers have a challenging schedule with Tennessee, Alabama and MSU all on the road. Combine that with LSU's three near disasters from last season (UT, MSU and Bama) this team could thrive or tank. Let's hope the Tigers can bring LSU its first outright SEC West Title and a trip to the SEC Championship in Atlanta.

Operating under the cloud of an NCAA investigation over the Albert Means incident, new head coach Dennis Franchione is trying to restore some sanity and stability to the Alabama program. This team is loaded and will win football games this season. Franchione won 10 games with TCU last year and should instill confidence in this Bama squad which is only two seasons removed from an SEC Championship and an Orange Bowl appearance. Playmaker Freddie Milons is back as is Andrew Zow (the guy can play, trust me). The real question revolves around possible NCAA sanctions and what effect they may have on the team. (Didn't seem to bother Auburn when they went 11-0 while on probation in Terry Bowden's first year.) The defense has a number of new faces, but the LB's are exceptional, led by Junior Saleem Rasheed. As with every team in the West, questions abound and will only be answered as the season progresses.

Let's hope we never have to hear, "Who let the dogs out!" ever again. MSU will be solid as Jackie Sherrill enters his 23rd season as a college head coach. The Bulldogs return 8 starters on offense and 5 on defense. MSU arguably has the best backfield in the country in Dicenzo Miller and Dontae Walker. The duo rushed for 1800 yards and 19 TD's last year. With nearly the entire OL returning from last season, expect substantial production from MSU on that side of the ball. The defense will again play aggressively and use press coverages. Fred Smoot turns over the reigns of the secondary to Pig Prather who should thrive this season. MSU, Bama and LSU are very close and any one of the three could win the West.

Arkansas gets the very talented Cedric Cobbs back this season. The question is, who's going to play QB. The Razorbacks suffered off season defections at the position which leaves them without a clear cut starter going into the season. I'm still not sold on Houston Nutt as a coach. Yes, they had a great first year, but haven't even come close to matching that success ever since. Danny Ford left Nutt a very talented team; I am curious to see if Nutt can get the Hogs back to another bowl game this year.

Tommy Tuberville is an ass. The cigars in 1999 and the garbage TD with less than a minute to play last year really hacked me off. Now that I've gotten that out the way, we can talk about all the holes in Auburn's offense. The other Tigers lost their starting QB, RB, FB and best WR. (Anyone else think Ronney Daniels is a fool for leaving a year early?) Auburn will have a solid defense which will keep them in games this season, but with so many new faces on offense, I don't expect big things from them this year. (This game is circled on my calendar as the big grudge match this year. I hate those guys!)

Eli Manning returns to the place where his father electrified the faithful for many a Saturday over 30 years ago. But unlike the days past, Ole Miss is no longer the powerhouse they once were. Ole Miss is in the same boat as Auburn as they lost their starting QB, RB and Grant Heard, their go-to WR. The Rebels will be fortunate to have a winning season.

2001 SEC East Preview

I'm all in favor of keeping dangerous weapons out of the hands of fools. Let's start with typewriters.

- Frank Lloyd Wright

If you will indulge me in a cliché', the more things change, the more things stay the same. The Mighty Gators, who some have ranked pre-season #1, are once again loaded. With plenty of talent on both sides of the ball and a favorable schedule, the Gators are poised to make a run at another National Championship.
The biggest hurdles they will face are home games against Tennessee and the Criminoles, a road trip to Tiger Stadium (remember '97?) and the potential QB shuffle between Rex Grossman and Brock Berlin. Steve Spurrier is looking for a leader to emerge as Danny Wuerffel did in 1996 when he led the Gators to their only National Championship.

Tennessee is also extremely talented this year. But how can they beat the Gators in the Swamp when they can't win at home? UT hasn't won at Florida since the 70's. With this year's Gators, I don't give the Vols much chance of pulling the upset. But don't be surprised to see them go 10-1 and potentially make a BCS Bowl. They are loaded on both sides of the ball and Fulmer is a top notch coach.

Love him or hate him, one must acknowledge the fact that Lou Holtz can coach. After a brutal 0-11 campaign in 1999, the 2000 Gamecocks were the talk of college football. With another year in the system, QB Phil Petty should be able to effectively lead the offense. The big question is whether RB Derek Watson can stay out of trouble. If he does, the Gamecocks have a chance to challenge the big Bullies of the East.

Georgia made the very surprising decision to fire Jim Donnan after bringing the Dawgs to four straight bowls and coming away with four consecutive bowl victories. Mark Richt, the former offensive coordinator for the Criminoles gets his first stint as a head coach. Good luck. Playing in the East will be a real challenge, but Georgia starts the season with four straight home games which may allow the coaching staff to work out a few kinks and get a better feel for the squad.

For the second year in a row, Vandy will not finish last in the East. The Commodores can have a winning season, but they must take care of the three non-league games (MTSU, Duke and Richmond), then beat UK, Ole Miss on the road and steal one (Auburn at home?)

Kentucky is a mess. They will struggle mightily this year. A winless conference schedule is a definite possibility this season.

Good...Bad

Good...UAB, I like that little dragon on the helmet

Bad…LSU

Good…South Carolina, Pittsburgh and North Carolina State are a combined 12-0

Bad…Alabama and Penn State are a combined 2-7

Good…Melissa Stark

Even Better…Jill Arrington

Good…Jeff Smoker, 4^th and 10, game on the line, no problem. The freshman quarterback threw a 68-yard game winning touchdown pass to Herb Haygood with only 1:48 left.

Bad…Josh Booty, 1^st and 10 with a chance to win the game. Let me throw another interception.

Good…Michigan State gets a gutsy 27-21 victory over Notre Dame.

Bad…Penn State stinks. I think even LSU could give them a run for their money.

Good…Still in the hunt, Nebraska, FSU, K-State, Clemson, Florida, Ohio State, Michigan State, Oklahoma, Virginia Tech, Washington, Auburn and USC (both of them)

Bad…Poser material, UCLA and Wisconsin.

Good…the e-mails on the Jim Rome show. Very funny stuff.

Bad…the callers on the Jim Rome show. Very bad stuff.

Good…The Dolphins win again.

Bad…Da Saints.

Good…The Saint Louis Rams may be the most talented offensive team ever assembled. Those dudes are AWESOME.

Bad… Saints Special Teams are anything but special.

Good…Miller Lite

Bad…Schlitz

Good…Top QB’s, Woody Danzler (Clemson), Chris Weinke (FSU) and Michael Vick VaTech)

Also Good…Top RB’s, Michael Bennett (Wisconsin), the A-Train Anthony Thomas (Michigan) and LaDanian Tomlinson (TCU)

Good…Alice in Chains and 311

Bad…N’Sync and the Backstreet Boys

Good…Drew Brees, 409 yards passing and 88 yards rushing with 3 TD’s

Bad…Josh Booty, hell, I’ve cracked on that clown too much as it is…..

The Best…Tomorrow is always another day. No matter how bad yesterday was, today brings new hope. We can put the mistakes of the past behind us and move on to better days, hopefully so much the wiser. The sun still came up on Sunday; my paper was thrown in my carport and my dogs were barking as loud as ever. (Bad Maggie!!) The LSU football team, the LSU fans (especially) and everyone else need to keep that in mind. It’s only a game, a game LSU will eventually play well. Let’s just hope sooner rather than later. This goes for Josh Booty too. I mean, it can’t get worse…can it?

The Worst…Keyshawn Johnson, dude is a total loser. It’s one thing to run smack at someone, it’s another thing to make it a personal mission to insult another player and coach any chance you get. Just another example of a classless and immature NFL millionaire. Fortunately the Jets won he was shut down. Let’s hope he shuts up as well.

Push the Panic Button. NOW!!!

That’s right, push that panic button with all due haste. Shades of the worst of Curley Hallman and the death knell game of Gerry DiNardo come to mind when thinking of this past weekend. Let’s break it down. Not that it makes me feel any better to actually dig into that ugly game, but there were some positives.

The defense played well. They gave up only 13 points and 6 of those came off LSU turnovers. Given the offense turned it over SIX times, the defense was stout. UAB only gained 187 yards in total offense.

I thought the pass protection was decent for the most part. Booty was only sacked once.

However, the negatives heavily outweighed the positives.

Josh Booty continues to struggle. I really don’t see much improvement in his game from last year. Disregarding the first game against W. Carolina, his numbers are 40-88 (45%), 574 yards (191 yards/game), 4 TD’s and 7 Int.’s. He’s on pace to throw 21 Int’s this season. Nothing is more frustrating than watching true freshmen like Jeff Smoker at Michigan State or Philip Rivers at North Carolina State make game winning plays while watching Josh Booty throw the game away. Yes some guys dropped balls, but when crunch time comes, Booty is woefully incompetent. The problem is there is evidently no one else to run this offense. Get ready Tiger fans; you will probably be forced to sit through another long and painful season.

The receivers couldn’t catch a cold. I lost track of the number of dropped passes. When Booty was actually throwing to the correct team, LSU’s receivers couldn’t hang on.

Still can’t run block very well.

John Corbello can’t hit anything beyond 35 yards. He is struggling this year hitting only 3 of 7 FG’s.

I can’t believe some of the garbage I hear on talk radio. Jimmy Ott insists that Josh Booty is an NFL quarterback. Right. Unless this guy makes some miraculous transformation, he’ll be lucky to start next year. The guy is a bad football player. No other way around it. He can’t read a defense and it seems that he may be tough to coach. I don’t consider ad-libbing to a play only he knows good decision making. Just run the play genius. Don’t think, that’s when you get in trouble.

Where does LSU go from here? Hell if I know, I count beans and sue people for a living. But I think Craig Nall may be moving up the depth chart. Not because of anything he has done, but with Booty’s poor performances, you’ve got to wonder how patient the staff is going to be with him. The WR’s coach must be a little red faced. His crew was pretty pitiful this past week. The best thing to look at this year is the development of individual players who may be able to help LSU next year. It’s obvious the woes of last year were not all caused by poor coaching. This is a very talented staff working with very average talent. Jimbo Fisher is an up and coming coach who has tutored some fine quarterbacks. This loss is very disappointing, but everyone needs to be patient.

Nick Saban will start earning that paycheck in the off season when he starts getting some studs to sign with LSU. (It’s already begun by the way.) I’m buying into the philosophy of building a program, not a team. Look at the fine Michigan State team he left, plenty of blue chip players who know how to win. That’s where LSU will be. Just be patient.

Strike up the Band

I hit the Chimes after work on Tuesday and was fortunate enough to hear the band practicing. The bands are a critical part of what makes college football special. Although everyone loves the nan-na-nan-nant of LSU, I think USC has one of the best fight songs in America.

Here is the link to download it. Fanfare, Tribute to Troy and Fight On

Just a few comments on the depth chart, it looks like Darren Parquet may get red-shirted this year as he has not been listed on the RB chart. This will give him a year to get stronger and faster, similar to the situation with Rondel Mealy. I also noticed the staff moved Norman LeJeune to Free Safety. This guy was an excellent hitter last year so I look for him to possibly get more playing time as the nickel back. I think Saban wants a BIG hitter at Strong Safety so LeJeune got caught up in a size game. Abram Booty looks to be the 4th receiver, which is about where he should be. Demetrius Hookfin evidently impressed at CB and has bumped Robert Davis as starting Right Corner. Hookfin is young and presents a big upside to LSU, as he will grow into the position, hopefully. I was really surprise Dom Davis got bumped from starting RB. He was impressive last year in the limited duty he played. Toefield was not impressive last summer in the scrimmages I saw him. Obviously the knee is healed and he is ready to run over some folks this year. I still can’t get over his stats from his junior year in high school, 2,800 yards and 45 touchdowns. That is obscene.

Don’t expect to get much out of the first game. It will give the coaches an opportunity to look at everyone but that’s about it. It will be the most beneficial to the young guys as they can get some jitters out and find some sort of comfort zone playing to a big audience. I love a blowout as much as the next guy and this should be an offensive exhibition for the Tigers.

Good...Bad

Good…Only 6 days left until LSU kicks off the 2000 football season.

Bad…. 6 long and excruciating days until LSU kicks off the 2000 football season.

Good…Michigan State is 22 in the pre season coaches poll and 25 in the AP poll

Bad…. Is Michigan State an institute for higher learning or reformatory school for wayward youngsters?

Good…Tailgating at an LSU football game

Bad…Sweating like the proverbial “whore in church” while tailgating at an LSU football game

Good…The NFL exhibition season is over

Bad…. The NFL exhibition season is a joke. Someone get rid of this crap.

Good…Bruce Snyder, head coach at Arizona State, takes the high road and boots his
starting QB off the team after an off the field incident.

Bad… Jo Pa, how can you let Casey play? He beat up a cop.

Good…The bands at college football games.

Bad… The piped in music at most NFL games.

Good…Melissa Stark

Bad… Eric “the dick” Dickerson

The Best…All of the feelings, emotion and fun that comes with the college football season. Every year millions of fans get geared up to root for their alma mater, state school or favorite program. There’s no salary cap, your favorite player won’t get traded, your team won’t move and you don’t have to pay for pre-season games when buying season tickets. You gotta love it.

The Worst...I’m not even going there.

2000 SEC Preview

Welcome back everyone. It’s good to be talking about college football again. Thanks for visiting my page. I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoy writing it. As I said last year, I don’t pretend to have the inside skinny on any aspect of the program. You want game recaps and the “word on the street” you’ll have to look elsewhere. All I offer are my takes on LSU and other goings on in the world of sports. Feel free to write and contribute to my page. Remember to check back at the beginning of each week to see the weekly installment of the Good…Bad list.

This will be a very balanced year in both divisions of the SEC. I can’t remember a season in recent memory where there were so many questions to be answered in the East. Is this Georgia’s year? Will Tennessee be down? Will Jesse Palmer be the answer for the Gators? What about Louisiana product Brock Berlin, where does he fit in the mix?

Although the trendy pick is Georgia, I’m going with the Gators. Three defensive coordinators in three years does not create cohesion on the defensive side of the ball. The only reason Georgia will not have a meltdown (see LSU 1998) is Quincy Carter. Although my brother-in-law disagrees, I think he is a fabulous player who can literally do it all. He is the Michael Vick of the SEC. But Carter is a much more accomplished passer and thus brings more to the table. Florida’s defense returns ten starters with loads of talent. Spurrier will have the offense back on track so I look for more consistency and productivity from them. This is how I see the East stacking up.

1. Florida
2. Georgia
3. Tennessee
4. Kentucky
5. Vanderbilt
6. South Carolina

The West is wild once again. Alabama is strong but if but they lost two key ingredients to their offensive success, Shaun Alexander and Chris Samuels. The Crimson Tide secondary is also suspect. But I still think they will win the West. Ole Miss has a great backfield but until they beat the big boys, I’ll take a ‘show me’ attitude toward their chances this year. The rest of the teams are all close and could end up in any order. I think MSU and Arkansas will be down which will allow Auburn and LSU to step up and have winning records. This is how I see the West finishing.

1. Alabama
2. Ole Miss
3. LSU
4. Auburn
5. MSU
6. Arkansas

I see the Tigers winning 6 or 7 games this year. They have three rent-a-wins. Therefore you are looking at winning 3 or 4 conference games. LSU gets Kentucky and MSU at home this year. I think LSU can win both of these games. Then they only need to steal one more game from someone to get to 6 wins and a bowl birth. But where will it come? I love these idiots on talk radio. I really do. I’ve heard people state that a victory over Auburn is a foregone conclusion. Hello…this is a team that hung 41 on us in our own house. Now we have to visit them, which may actually be a blessing. The road team has won this game every year since 1996. I like our chances against Tennessee, if the game is played at night. A night game is good for at least four points to LSU. I liken the game to LSU’s 1995 victory over Auburn. It will be sold out and the place will be hyped, as LSU will be 3-1 or even 4-0 when the Vols visit Baton Rouge for the first time since 1989. LSU won’t win in the Swamp and Bama will not lose in Tiger Stadium. Alabama has not suffered a defeat in Baton Rouge since 1969. Ridiculous. That leaves tough road games against Ole Miss and Arkansas. Everyone needs to take a deep breath and be satisfied with a bowl game. Any bowl game. However, I do think a losing season would be a major disappointment. LSU has enough talent to win at least 3 conference games, especially after come close many times last year.

Anyone who read this page last year knows I can’t stand Josh Booty and the phenomenon I call “the Cult of Booty.” These were the nimrods saying the coaches didn’t call good plays for Booty in the Arkansas game, that’s why he struggled. Right, keep telling yourself that. But it looks like he gets the job by default. Possibly with better coaching he can avoid the mistakes of last year. But believe me, if Rohan were healthy, Booty would only see the field at garbage time. OK, enough negativism.

Geaux Tigers.

Can You Feel It?

It’s there. Imperceptibly at first, but as the dog days of August wind down, the feeling gets stronger. You know what I’m talking about.

Can you feel it?

Coon Asses from around the state are experiencing the excitement that is the beginning of another LSU football campaign. Hope abounds as new head coach Nick Saban leads LSU into what will hopefully be a rebirth of LSU football glory.

Can you feel it?

From the Golden Band from Tigerland to LSU’s Golden Girls, from drunk frat boys to little old ladies, from the woman who sat next to me and read a book during an entire LSU game last season to the most rabid of foul mouthed LSU fans, they are all eagerly anticipating the upcoming season.

Can you feel it?

The New Coach

I think LSU made a terrific move for two reasons. One, Nick Saban is a very good coach. Two, and even more important in the long run, LSU has ended the perception that it is a backwoods watering hole unwilling to pay a top notch coach. The Curleys and DiNardos of the world will no longer be “prime candidates” for the LSU head coaching position. Top coaches will look at LSU as a place to win championships, not a place use as leverage in seeking a pay raise with their present employer. I understand that just because LSU spent a great deal of money, wins are not guaranteed to follow. But with the financial commitment, LSU shows the fans, supporters and others around the country that LSU is serious about the football program.

As to Saban specifically, I like the hire. Yes his record is only slightly better than DiNardo’s, but let’s dig deeper into those numbers. After 5 years with Saban, MSU is playing in the Citrus Bowl. After 5 years with DiNardo, LSU was on the verge of matching its WORST season record in the 106 year history of LSU football. When DiNardo took over at LSU, the cubord was hardly bare. LSU had the #1 rated defense in the SEC in ’94 and a number of seniors on the ’95 squad. MSU was in a different position. Coming off NCAA probation, MSU was not loaded with talent, yet Saban brought that squad to the Independence Bowl.

Another important factor is recruiting base. MSU and LSU are on totally different planes. MSU has to compete with Michigan, Ohio State, Penn State and Notre Dame for prospects. The big hurdle being that MSU is viewed as the second best school in the state behind UM. LSU owns Louisiana. Yes, some schools come in to raid the state, but LSU’s head coach should be able to keep many of those players here. I think DiNardo did a decent job of recruiting, as there are many talented players on the squad. His problem was one of attrition, either grades or guys getting so deep in the dog house they decided to leave. According to ESPN’s recruiting expert, MSU was on the verge of landing a top 10 recruiting class. If he can do that at MSU, he can do it at LSU.

Will he stay? I’m not terribly worried about Saban leaving. He has moved around a bit, but LSU has set the bar extremely high for another program to entice him to leave. The NFL? If he was going to leave, why didn’t he take the Colts job? It was right down the street from where he was, the Colts GM is believed by many to be one of the best people in the NFL, and you know the money was there. I think Saban wants to be the complete boss. He wants to be in charge of coaching and player personnel. There are only 6 coaches in the NFL who have that power. However, a college coach is lord of his realm. He brings in his players and decides who stays and who plays. If he is hired away by someone else, then it means LSU will have won a lot of football games.

I am a bit biased as I think Morris Watt is a terrific coach. I hope he comes back down with Saban. The one thing it shows me is that Saban has an eye for coaching talent and when DiNardo ran Watts off, Saban picked him up for the MSU staff. In only his first year running the offense, Watts had MSU scoring 31 points a game. The only question left is who the coordinator is if Watts does not return.

A few other numbers are interesting to look at. DiNardo’s record against Florida, Alabama, Georgia and Ole Miss is 4-13. On the plus side he was 3-0 in bowl games. Admittedly three smaller bowls, but LSU was well prepared for those games.

Saban was 9-7 versus Michigan, Penn State, Ohio State and Notre Dame. Currently, MSU has a three game winning streak against Notre Dame and a two game winning streak against OSU. Unfortunately, he was also 0-3 in his bowl games which is troubling, but I don’t think it is cause for alarm. What does all this mean? Saban can obviously get his team up for big games during the regular season, (remember OSU from last year). I think with more depth and better talent consistency will follow. I think this year was a great example of that. I have always believed that one key to a winning season is winning when you play poorly. FSU is a good example of this. Some of their games were lackluster, yet they have so much talent, they can win even if they are not “up” for the game.