2016 NCAA Football preseason thread

[Gaolee]

Do we have one of these threads? We do now.

The usual suspects will still be around, but it's been amusing watching Chris Peterson swat away any hint of hype around the Washington Husky football team. By all rights, they should be good. The defense is back mostly intact, and the offense has most of its critical parts back, too. They are thin at receiver, but they get John Ross back. He's one of the fastest guys playing the game right now.

I don't know what might happen in the Ivies. Nobody ever does.

 

[Pilgrim]

Media have a low level frenzy around the dawgz, but it's really based on potential rather than performance - so far. They won six regular season games last season, plus their bowl game.

Washington State won eight regular season games plus their bowl game - and they seem to be a well kept secret except for a few analysts who are pointing out that they have the top QB in the conference returning...along with a decent cross-section of offense and defense.

It's going to be an interesting season in the PAC-12 north, and a very interesting Apple Cup in Pullman!

 

[MJ5150]

Yay! Thank you.
Florida has a new QB to decide on this season.
Some changes in Hanover this season for Dartmouth as well. I haven't paid as much attention as I'd like to, but a buddy is going to an event this week on campus to get everyone excited for the season and will fill me in.

-Mike

 

[Gaolee]

It's going to be an interesting season in the PAC-12 north, and a very interesting Apple Cup in Pullman!

Yes, it is. The Apple Cup is always very interesting when it's in Pullman. It wouldn't surprise me too much if the Dawgs and Cougs were playing for the north spot in the Pac 12 championship in the Apple Cup. Of course, anything can happen, which means it wouldn't surprise me if they were both playing for bowl game eligibility.

Ohio State will reload in the Big 10. They may or may not win the Big 10, but they will compete. They always do. I don't pay much attention to the SEC or ACC. Sombody else has to take responsibility for filling us all in on those teams.

 

[Pilgrim]

Oregon comes to Pullman on October 1, and if both teams are winning, there's a VERY good chance that ESPN Gameday will make its first trip to Pullman. The producers want to do it, and they're looking for a good reason.

The WSU flags have become part of Gameday, having now appeared for about 170 consecutive weeks. To say that this would be a wild day in Pullman is an understatement, so of course my wife and I WILL BE THERE!!

GO, COUGS!!

 

[GregC]

As we gear up for the season, this looks like an appropriate place to post this sad news. RIP, John Saunders. Longtime ESPN host Saunders dead at age 61

I'll miss him. He always seemed both classy and approachable. (The anti-Bayless.)

 

[Pilgrim]

As we gear up for the season, this looks like an appropriate place to post this sad news. RIP, John Saunders. Longtime ESPN host Saunders dead at age 61

I'll miss him. He always seemed both classy and approachable. (The anti-Bayless.)

This is evidently quite unexpected and sudden. A sad event.

 

[MJ5150]

Oh dang, that's a major bummer.
Saunders was one of my favorites. College football won't be the same without him.

-Mike

 

[Funky Ghost]

The amount of expectation and pressure to translate it all on the field now is palpable for Michigan. I sure hope the Wolverines start strong and carry the momentum. I miss the hey-day of cheering for team everyone had a reason to hate instead of pity.

 

[D M C]

The amount of expectation and pressure to translate it all on the field now is palpable for Michigan. I sure hope the Wolverines start strong and carry the momentum. I miss the hey-day of cheering for team everyone had a reason to hate instead of pity.

I pity them. Go Bucks!

 

[D M C]

As we gear up for the season, this looks like an appropriate place to post this sad news. RIP, John Saunders. Longtime ESPN host Saunders dead at age 61

I'll miss him. He always seemed both classy and approachable. (The anti-Bayless.)

I was shocked to hear of it. He seemed very competent and nice.

 

[GregC]

The amount of expectation and pressure to translate it all on the field now is palpable for Michigan. I sure hope the Wolverines start strong and carry the momentum. I miss the hey-day of cheering for team everyone had a reason to hate instead of pity.

Coach Beige Pants sure has a big yap on'im considering the lack of titles. It will be interesting to see if he can back it up.

 

[Gaolee]

That school up north with a name that starts with M also has Jim Harbaugh as a coach. That should prevent them from winning the Big 10. It's just a requirement that neither is successful. Just a requirement that they are successful enough for it to really sting when the Buckeyes put a good whooping on them. That's all there is on that subject.

 

[Funky Ghost]

Heh, all y'all can suck it

I like Harbaugh well enough. The game needs villains and he can play the foil well enough. I really do appreciate his passion for winning, not just the game, but being excellent at it. His ability to bring in better recruits by his name alone doesn't suck.

Also, wearing "My Coaches handshake is more manly than yours" T-Shirts never gets old

 

[Funky Ghost]

I pity them. Go Bucks!

Bah!

 

[Gaolee]

Only about a week and a half to go until the first games. Maybe less, if somebody has an early one this weekend or sometime next week.

Washington lost a bit of linebacker depth when Sean Constantine broke his ankle in practice. He's out for the year. I feel bad for him, since he can't get that year back. Chances are he'll redshirt, which kinda gets the year back. I hope he does well in his classes during the recovery time. At any rate, that's about it for what I know about problems for them. Budda Baker is reportedly going to be used on both sides of the ball, just like John Ross was before he tore up his knee and lost all of the 2015 season. Ross is back and has his speed back, so that's a good sign for the Huskies.

The Pac-12 is a mystery. Almost anybody except Oregon State or Cal could be competitive in the North.

The Ivy League? That's Mike's area of expertise.

 

[Funky Ghost]

So many games I'm looking forward to this year.

Waiting until the last game for the Buckeyes...

That will cap off a tough five game run. The first half of the season is going to be nice for breaking in a new QB. 6 or 7 home games in a row. No excuses for a poor showing.

I'm looking forward to the Wisconsin game. Clement is a hell of a runner and looks to have a beastly o-line in front of him. Should be a fun game but the Wolverines better not sleep on them.

 

[Pilgrim]

It's tough when you live 1000 miles from the ol' Alma Mater.....

So far I'm going to attend two Cougar games and might just make a third. Oregon, Colorado, and Oregon State is a possibility!

Predictions are all over the board for WSU, with an average of 6-8 wins forecast. I'd sure like to see that, and NOT re-visit the Sun Bowl!!

I like visiting El Paso, and I had a great time there when we played the Sun Bowl and beat Purdue in 2001, but then the game was played on Dec. 31. That's a pretty fun time to travel for a game. But now the dillweeds running that bowl have it on December 26th! I'm not going to abandon Christmas day and travel to El Paso. That was the first WSU bowl game in 30 years that I watched on TV instead of attending. Maybe the TV audience is better on the 26th, but I don't think it did attendance any favors.

So I'm hoping for another bowl with a more family-travel-friendly date.

 

[Funky Ghost]

It's a shame about Shalom. This time of year I hole my breath for both College and NFL football players and the possible reports of misconduct.

 

[Pilgrim]

It's a shame about Shalom. This time of year I hole my breath for both College and NFL football players and the possible reports of misconduct.

Me, too. It hurts when a team is sorted out for fall and then one or more members do something stupid. We forget that they may be 6'3" and 260 pounds, but they're still kids. Not to say that they can't hurt people or cause damage, but in a small college town they can't do much of anything in public without drawing a LOT of attention. The days when players got extra breaks are gone, at least in my small home town. Anything an athlete does gets extra coverage.