Breaking Down the Big12 ( North edition)

#1
TXA&M07

TXA&M07

Roll the dice....
Joined
Sep 14, 2007
Messages
28,752
Likes
290
#1
Breaking Down the Big 12

North:

It makes a ton of sense to pick Kansas to win this otherwise fairly even side of the Big 12, and considering Mangino has embraced the preseason rankings from the writers, its almost a gimme. Nebraska and Mr. Pelini may have something to say about that.

Nebraska 1:

While the Corn Shuckers still lack a solid QB, Junior Zac Lee will have to do. Their other options left town along with last year’s standout, Joe Ganz. I’m looking forward to seeing a kid from my alma mater (LaPorte High School) Quentin Castille fill in the big shoes left behind by that group of running backs last year. I think the defense will be improved with the majority of their seniors sticking around. That 300 pounder named Suh is a leader, as well as a man-child. Expect them to finish up their season in a mediocre bowl after losing to Texas in the Big 12 Championship.

Kansas 2:

They Jayhawks still have Todd Reesing. This means they still have a chance, and according to their schedule, it’ll be October before they truly get tested. Kansas has by far one of the top 3 easiest OOC schedules in the Big12. While I don’t think they got any better on the defensive side of the ball, I certainly think they have some firepower on offense to score quickly. Throwing the ball down the field will be tough to defend against speedsters Briscoe and Meier. Something else to keep in mind, don’t think for a second that Reesing has forgotten about setting that school record for passing in just 3 seasons.

Mizzou 3:

Where oh where did my Quarterback go? That’s what Gary must have been singing all summer long while on the recruiting trail. The short and narrow of it is, the Tigers lost too many key players to be anything but average this year. They open at Illinois and I expect them to lose every game in the month of October. They’ll get a break towards the end of the year, but after being pounded by Nebraska, Okie Lite, Texas, and possibly Colorado, they’ll get no sympathy from Baylor. The run of Big 12 CG’s might be over for a while, but who knows, their last game is usually pretty exciting. This year, they will have to fight it out in enemy territory though.

Colorado 4:

I’m tempted to put K-State 4th but I like Dan Hawkins and I think the OOC games will give the Buffs more wins than K-State. Playing WV on Oct 1st wont be a win leading into the gauntlet that is the rest of their schedule, but it sure as hell beats opening with Massachusetts, then La-La, then UCLA out west. Colorado will be back to their old ways until they get another Qb, and unless Dan has anymore sons, I don’t foresee anyone of any note stepping in and running his system as well as Cody did. He maybe coaching intramurals after a few more losing seasons.

K-State 5:

Freeman gone, new/old Coach returning, they play an ugly OOC schedule, yup, K-State should be better than Iowa State and that’s about it. A rebuilding process will begin with all new faces in same old places but rest assured, the BBQ at the tailgate party will still be good. In fact, there will be more talent in the parking lot than what is on the field. Look for another dismal year for the Wildcats, who, at the end of the day, prefer to be considered a basketball school.

Iowa State 6:

Those snazzy new uniforms they introduced did nothing more than give them something else to wipe the blood off with. One quick question, who in the hell is Paul Rhoads? Anyhow, they finished 0-fer last year in the North and will probably be the stepping-stone of the Big 12 until they get put in the MAC, WAC, or Southland Conference. What, you mean to tell me you don’t think TCU would be a better fit in the Big 12?

The Recap:
1. Nebraska (10-2)
2. Kansas (8-4)
3. Mizzou (6-6)
4. Colorado (5-7)
5. K-State (3-9)
6. Iowa State (2-10)

The Skinny:

Nebraska begins their long road back to the top of the ladder while Kansas watches their reputation as an up-and-coming football program fizzle out. Stick to Basketball Jayhawks, you’ve always been an “indoor” sports school anyway.


Offering you insight into the 2nd best conference in the country since 2007.

Regards,

TXVOL

(South breakdown coming soon.)
 
#2
#2
Interesting read, sir,:good!: but I didn't know Kansas State wanted to be a basketball school. :ermm:
 
#3
#3
It's not out of the realm of possibility for Colorado to win 10 games this year...schedule is easy.
 
#8
#8
I have Colorado losing to:

West Virginia (They won in Overtime last year at home, they'll play in WV this year)
Texas (Its t.u. ok?)
Kansas (Kansas won by 16 last year)
Mizzou (Mizzou pitched a 58-0 shut out last year)
TAMU (I watched them lose to the Ags in person last year)
Okie Lite (Lost by 13 last year)
and Nebraska. (Lost by 9 last year)
 
#9
#9
and on a side note about the Buffs, they beat K-State by 1 last year, so old Dan ought to thank me for penning in a "W" for that game this year. Im still on the fence about that one, but I'm leaving it as I put it.
 
#10
#10
IPorange said:
Some of these teams are good enough to finish in the top half of the Big 10 or Pac 10 (Nebraska, Kansas, Mizzou). Sure, the North is weak compared to the South, but they aren't exactly awful.
Click to expand...

No way any of these teams are better than Cal, SC, Oregon, or Oregon STate. And i'm not sure UCLA, Arizona, ASU, or even Stanford would give em a run for their money.

edit: and I only say this because kansas and mizzou lost big time talent and aren't exactly recruiting jugernaughts.
 
#11
#11
IPorange said:
Some of these teams are good enough to finish in the top half of the Big 10 or Pac 10 (Nebraska, Kansas, Mizzou). Sure, the North is weak compared to the South, but they aren't exactly awful.
Click to expand...

They've gotten a little better with Missouri and Kansas coming on. But there for awhile when Nebraska was down the Big 12 North was in the running for the worst BCS division. I realize the Big 10 and Pac 10 have no divisions, but I think if you arbitrarily divided them into West/East and North/South you'd probably have come up with a better group of teams.
 
#13
#13
TXVOL07 said:
I have Colorado losing to:

West Virginia (They won in Overtime last year at home, they'll play in WV this year)
Texas (Its t.u. ok?)
Kansas (Kansas won by 16 last year)
Mizzou (Mizzou pitched a 58-0 shut out last year)
TAMU (I watched them lose to the Ags in person last year)
Okie Lite (Lost by 13 last year)
and Nebraska. (Lost by 9 last year)
Click to expand...

WVU - Pat White is gone.

Texas - They'll lose this one.

Kansas - They may lose this one, but it's in Boulder this time.

Mizzou - Chase Daniel and Jeremy Maclin are gone.

TAMU - It's in Boulder, although I admit, it was an embarrassing display by the Buffs against a bad team.

Okie State - They'll lose this one.

Nebraska - The 9 point loss is a bit misleading, as a sneaker of a 57 yard field goal saved the Huskers from what otherwise would have been a loss.
 
#14
#14
You do realize that Mizzou's soph QB has more PT and productive receivers than the Nubs, right? You do realize that Maclin and Coffman both missed significant PT/games last year, only to be replaced by the same guys (Jared Perry @ WR, Andrew Jones @ TE) that are starting this year in their place, right? Plus, Mizzou returns a healthy DaNario Alexander, who was arguably better than Jeremy Maclin early in '07 before an injury. He's finally back at full speed for '09.

Gabbert was a stud at QB this spring, minus the final scrimmage where he was missing some of his targets for precautionary reasons. He's back there with Derrick Washington, who is one of the B12's best RBs with DeMarco Murray (OU) and Kendall Hunter (OSU). Pretty nice option to have standing next to you.

Nebraska doesn't even know who their QB or WRs are going to be. Seeing how Marlon Lucky started last year, can Helu handle all the carries with the large weight gain or will a skinnier Castille, who had some fumbling issues at times, have to step in?

kU's missing most of their OL, so the Keebler Elf at QB is going to have to use all the elusiveness that he has to scramble around. kU's also has a huge question at LB.

Mizzou's defense is being led by AA candidate Sean Weatherspoon, and everyone but one player (Terrell Resonno at DT) has experience, and even then, Resonno is 6-7 and three-bills, so he's a big body that a guard is going to have a tough time with. Carl Gettis has All-Big 12 written all over him.

In my opinion: kU has the least amount of questions (OL, LB, which both could be gaping holes) and the least amount of talent.

I don't get the Nebraska hype: getting waxed by Mizzou at home in '08,, struggling against a horrendous Colorado team AT HOME (!), and barely squeaking by a team that was the biggest underachiever of the year in Clemson. Oh, and they lose their QB and TOP TWO WRs and have to travel to both CoMo and Lawrence in '09.

Nebraska will be lucky to finish third if Colorado gets it's stuff together. The B12N will come down to Camerohead again: Mizzou/kU.
 
#15
#15
Let me touch on a few of these points Mizzoufan.

-I dont think D Wash is in the same category as DeMarco Murray yet.
-I do think your point about Weatherspoon being a beast is spot on correct.
-Nebraska will start Zac Lee at Qb.
-I stand by my previous rankings.

How do you rank them?
 
#16
#16
TXVOL07 said:
Let me touch on a few of these points Mizzoufan.

-I dont think D Wash is in the same category as DeMarco Murray yet.
-I do think your point about Weatherspoon being a beast is spot on correct.
-Nebraska will start Zac Lee at Qb.
-I stand by my previous rankings.

How do you rank them?
Click to expand...

-You know that D Wash had more rushing yards than Murray in '08 with the same amount of carries, right? (Overall Football Stats (2008 Final) - Big 12 Conference - Official Athletic Site)

Hunter, Murray, and Washington are the best B12 backs. I think Helu could jump in at some point depending on how the Huskers OLine works out. Plus, Texas never starts any scrubs, so it wouldn't surprise me to just add a Texas RB in that group.

-I figured Nebraska would start Lee, but maybe Cody Green would get some looks along with Spano. Both Green and Spano are freshman (Spano a RS). Remember, the Huskers didn't even consider Lee to compete with Patrick Witt, who ended up transfering earlier this year. Didn't seem that Bo had faith in the kid to get the job done, and I sincerely doubt his view has changed since Witt transferred.

I don't get the Husker hype. They were a lucky, tipped interception away from losing to Colorado AT HOME and barely beat the most underachieving team of '08 in the Gator Bowl (Clemson). They also got waxed by Mizzou at home and struggled against kU at home, lose two of their "top WRs" (Peterson and Swift, who never did much there), a QB, and some other pieces.

-This is how I see the North:

1a) kU: Least amount of questions with a returning QB and the most talented returning WR in the B12N. Their OLine is a huge question, and Sharp is an average, at best, RB. They lost a lot at LB too. Their schedule does them no favors, but isn't even close to being as tough as Nebraska's.

1b) Mizzou: Andrew Jones and Jared Perry both did well filling in for Coffman and Maclin, and a 100% DaNario Alexander will be GREAT for the wideouts. Add in Wes Kemp and Rolandis Woodland, who's been compared to Maclin both at WR and mix in D-Wash, and the offense isn't looking bad. An experienced OL will help protect Gabbert, who was tutored by two very good QBs in Daniel and Patton. Every player that is a new starter was used in heavy rotation last year and in '07, outside of Gabbert. The secondary is the only question. They have experience, but that experience was either pretty good ('07) or not so good ('08). The B12N will come down to the Arrowhead matchup with kU in the last game of the regular season. They host Nebraska on a Thursday night ESPN game, and the Huskers haven't won in CoMo in awhile.

3). Nebraska will be lucky to land here, especially if Colorado is as good as Hawkins thinks they are (probably a safe bet they aren't). Helu is a solid back, but that's the only offensive weapon they have. No wideouts, and a QB that was expected to compete for a backup spot is now their starter...not good for the Huskers. Suh is a pretty good DT, but really, who else do they have? This is the same team that didn't earn their "blackshirts" (I prefer blackskirts) on D, and got lit up time after time last year. They looked bad at home, and those teams they played at home last year, they go on the road to see this year. The Huskers schedule is the toughest of the contenders: trips to Larryville, CoMo, and Boulder, add Oklahoma coming to Lincoln, all mixed around a probable curbstomping by VTech in Blacksburg, this could be another long season for the Huskers. The Huskers will lose to either Tech or Baylor as well.

4). Colorado has some great RBs if they play to their full potential. I was high on Colorado last year, but they were a huge letdown. With their top WR transferring, it doesn't look great for the Buffs. If Cody Hawkins ever learns how to play effectively, the Buffs could be good...but that's a huge 'if'. The Buffs could roll with Tyler Hansen at QB, but even then, who will he have to throw the ball to? Who's going to step up and take over the backfield? Buffs have a tough schedule, but the top three teams in the B12N come to Boulder. On the flip side, the Buffs got smoked by Mizzou 58-0, kU won 30-14, and lost a well played game in Lincoln last year.

5). K-State quit on Ron Prince last year. They lose Josh Freeman, and insert Carson Coffman, a pretty good QB. Bill Snyder is doing his best to do anything with this team. But still, in 2009, this is Ron Prince's squad after he recruited every player that is starting. The only impact player on this team is Coffman. Plug in some already damning stuff on Snyder (his name showed up in an audit for missing money with two other swindlers, including the AD that had the shady deal with Prince. No word if Snyder had anything to do with it, but he's the face of the missing cash since he's the only one still with KSU), it looks like the the old man might not be around Manhattan too long. Wouldn't be surprised if he's done after this year, maybe retiring in mid-season.

6). Iowa State has yet another new coach. There is less talent in Ames than there is at the Mouse's Ear in Knoxville. I could see ISU winning a couple of games, but I could also see them going winless. They always seem to find a way to lose.
 
New posts
You must log in or register to reply here.

VN Store



Back
Top