Today’s Chorus is brought to you by Miami attendee and Curb You Enthusiasm mainstay Jeff Garlin. Here’s to hoping that, at one point, Garlin yelled out, “IT’S ALL ABOUT DA U!”

*****

• Former Georgia coach Jim Donnan is accused of profiting off of a Ponzi scheme. I, I, I just have nothing.

• CBS’s Brett McMurphy thinks that if USF is FOR REALZ about succeeding in college football they need to leave Raymond James Stadium. For. Ev. Er.

• Everybody, this is Russell Wilson … Russell, this is everybody. Hurray!

• Is Cal coach Jeff Tedford going and making things so complicated? Maybe?

• Today’s July 18th, which means two things — 1. It’s Vin Diesel‘s birthday, and 2. B1G specialist rankings ARE OUT.

• ESPN’s Ted Miller reviews Pac-12 linebackers. We’re all grateful he led off with ASU MLB Vontaze Burfict, not only because it’s deserved, but also because the safety of Ted’s family was probably at stake.

• Former Georgia Tech C Sean Bedford wrote an open letter to the NCAA that ended with him saying they could pry his 1999 ACC championship ring from his “cold, dead finger.” Well okay then!

• Years after Larry Coker allegedly only used Rivals to recruit, he’s bringing college football to San Antonio.

• SB Nation’s Bill Connelly previews Oklahoma State. There’s a pretty good chance new OC Todd Monken is taking notes.

• Former Michigan WR Desmond Howard led a new class into the College Football Hall of Fame. Humbly.

• SI.com’s Stewart Mandel profiles Michigan coach Brady Hoke.

• As per my understanding of photography and art, Wyoming will be wearing giant, oversized helmets this fall.

• Yahoo!!!!!!!’s Dr. Saturday has a very specific set of WAC predictions.

• Georgia‘s loading up on touted recruits. Probably wise.

• Rivals profiles first-year starting QBs who could maybe (potentially) win some games.

• UCLA is getting Vanderbilt CB Jamie Graham, which is pretty much the final puzzle piece for the Bruins.

*****

Today’s Video of the Day is what happens when water jet packs don’t, um, jet.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=he2a4xK8ctk

Enjoy your Monday. Today’s Solid Verbal Apparel Day!

***Follow me on Twitter.***

Today’s Chorus is brought to you by non-college attendee Matthew Broderick, who has the distinct honor of now being 25 years removed from his best work AND being married to Sarah Jessica Parker. I just made myself sad for no reason.

*****

• West Virginia coach Bill Stewart officially resigned, making OC/brief coach-in-waiting Dana Holgorsen the new Mountaineer head coach.

• Did Jim Tressel and Ohio State receive a warning email about alleged Buckeye memorabilia seller Dennis Talbott in 2007? Some say probably.

• Wisconsin WR Nick Toon commented on possible QB transfer Russell Wilson. NOT COOL (if you care about dumb secondary NCAA violations).

• Auburn coach Gene Chizik got PAID. Oversized leather jackets for everyone!

• SI.com’s Andy Staples suggests that perhaps West Virginia didn’t handle the whole “coach-in-waiting” thing properly. How dare he.

• Don’t pretend like LSUFreek wasn’t ready for Stewart/Holgo ’11.

• ESPN’s Andrea Adelson has a roundup of the weekend’s non-AQ excitement. Summary: Houston QB Case Keenum‘s got a wife, Wyoming‘s got a HS kid starting at QB, etc.

• Nebraska QB transfer Cody Green is looking at Big 12 schools. You don’t just pass up a chance to sometimes play on regional Fox Sports networks, you guys.

• ESPN’s Heather Dinich is totally down with Virginia Tech’s 2011 defense. Way out on a limb there, Heather.

• Did Ohio State players get free golf? I’ll say………… “yes.”

• Penn St coach Joe Paterno uses an iMac bigger than Joe Paterno to skype with recruits. COMETOPENNSTATE (signs off accidentally).

• Notre Dame and Michigan will play under the lights in Michigan Stadium wearing retro uniforms. Michigan wins the thread war.

• Former Ohio St coach Jim Tressel says “Thanks but no thanks” to the mandatory coaching seminar he would’ve had to attend if he were still coaching.

• Florida St coach Jimbo Fisher really wants to do this commercial. Really, he does. (via edsbs)

*****

Today’s Video of the Day is a performance from last night’s Tony Awards from “The Book of Mormon,” the musical written by the South Park guys, which i kind of need to see immediately.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=tggtPHDmrR8

Enjoy your Monday.

***Follow me on Twitter.***

Today’s Chorus is brought to you by Travis Barker, alumnus of no college or university. With that said, he still has a hell of a tat hookup in Columbus.

*****

• As of now, Ohio State coach Jim Tressel has been suspended two games (Akron and Toledo) and fined $250,000 by his bosses for knowingly playing ineligible players and not fully disclosing his knowledge of their memorabilia sales. The NCAA is yet to fully investigate this and arbitrarily reach a decision of their own.

Here is THE Ohio State documentation and submission to the NCAA. Included is the email proof of knowledge by Tressel.

ESPN’s Mark Schlabach had such high hopes for Tressel.

• UCLA DT Brandon Willis is transferring to North Carolina after committing to Tennessee, enrolling at North Carolina, then transferring to UCLA. We’re all excited to see him exhaust his eligibility without actually ever becoming eligible to play.

• The Huntsville, AL radio host who said he had tapes of Cecil Newton got canned for not actually having them. Oops.

• CBS Sports is priming for Washington State’s spring. Same goes for you, Missouri.

• SI.com’s Andy Staples looks at the questions that Virginia Tech and the ACC face in 2011. Some things you can’t unsee.

• Who are the ten best receivers in the SEC? ESPN’s Chris Low knows. EXCLUSIVE!!

• ESPN’s Heather Dinich went to a Miami practice and all I got were these bullet points.

• Some notes from Texas spring practice. Summary: Nobody knows much right now.

• Fox Sports Southwest examines the questions surrounding TCU’s spring and beyond. I’ll go out on a limb and say some Horned Frog will still wear smeared warpaint as eyeblack.

• An early look at the best non-conference games of 2011. And because it’s Fox, there’s a link in the middle to a site asking, “Are the girls of the SEC the hottest?” Not a joke.

• The Internet has demanded more Wyoming football players showing a camera around their homes and Wyoming football players have delivered.

*****

Today’s Video of the Day is Jackass for Girls.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=KgwTU9-a_3I

Enjoy your Wednesday.

Follow me on Twitter.

Today’s Chorus is brought to you, once again, by Natalie Portman. I’m told she’ll pregnantly win an Oscar on Sunday. I can’t imagine that there’s any other reason to watch in earnest.

*****

• SI.com’s Stewart Mandel fires a shot across the bow at Tennessee AD Mike Hamilton, the man responsible for hiring coaches accusing of violating NCAA rules in both of the school’s major revenue sports.

• If Stanford QB Andrew Luck gets dinged up this fall, he’s still getting PAID.

• Atlanta DE prospect Lorenzo Mauldin accepted an offer to play for South Carolina. And then the day before Signing Day, the school told him, “Not so much.” SEC Football!!!!!

• Texas coach Mack Brown closed spring practice to observers. Prediction: QB Garrett Gilbert will somehow still throw it to the wrong color jersey at some point.

• CBS’s Bryan Fischer kicked it with new Miami coach Al Golden. God, my descriptions are so hip.

• USC hired a new WR coach. His name is Ted Gilmore and here to say … he hopes QB Matt Barkley stops staring down his new receivers so much.

• New Texas OC Bryan Harsin had an offer for more years and more money from Les Miles to perform the same job at LSU. Unfortunately, it required coaching at LSU.

• ASU QB Steven Threet is stepping away from football due to suffering multiple concussions. Smart dude.

• California Golden Blogs created a formula called QB Score as a new way of measuring passing efficiency, which concentrates on generating yards against not generating turnovers. I don’t fully understand it, but Cal QB Brock Mansion is well into the negatives, so it feels right.

• SI.com’s Andy Staples reveals his all two-star team. I assume a jar of BBQ sauce or a rib bib gets shipped to each member in their goody bag.

• ESPN’s Andrea Adelson previews the springs for some notable non-AQ teams.

• ESPN’s Brian Bennett does the same for Notre Dame.

• Yahoo!!!!!!’s Dr. Saturday profiles Baylor’s “Mr Indispensible,” QB Robert Griffin.

• Wonderful Terrific Monds II is officially a Buffalo Bull. Awesome?

• The Wiz has the complete list of NFL Combine odds. Of course he does.

*****

Today’s Video of the Day is an exploration into the habitat of the Wyoming offensive lineman.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=haBv3g15mGU

Enjoy your Friday.

Ty and Dan talk about a wild evening slate of Week 3 games and dissect all the other action from Saturday.

Ty and Dan walk through all the action from Week Two, including the one-day collapse of the ACC, Oklahoma’s barnstorming of Florida State, and curious movies featuring Barn Owls.

Throughout August, we will be counting down the top 25 teams (as listed here) going into the 2009 season. Today we bring it on down to Utahville, where we’ll take a look at the only program to go undefeated twice in the BCS era. Another fun fact:, Utah is the only state in the union to have their nickname centered around the production and storage of honey. I love honey. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

First Impressions

A case could be made that this has been the Offseason of Utah. You could also consider Lane Kiffin and Tennessee, but it seems like the Utah football program is a central theme in every BCS story and more (or less) importantly, every congressional college football hearing thus far during the offseason. 

Larger stories aside, Utah has done quite well for itself. Its recruiting base isn’t big, but through innovative coaching and steady player development, the Utes have been able to couple quality 7-9 win seasons with special seasons in which they’ve punched some huge teams square in the mouth. 

Utah shares the same ol’ problem that most teams in western states face: exposure. You can only draw so many conclusions without actually seeing games, which obviously can work for or (generally) against non-BCS conference teams with BCS aspirations. 

As a west coast football fan, very few things have been more satisfying to watch than Utah dismantling a pouting Alabama team in the Sugar Bowl. Do you hear that ringing? John Parker Wilson still does. 

Last Year

Undefeated. Plain and simple, Utah was the most important team of the 2008 college football team. 

For you nitpickers, there were some weaker parts of the 2008 season that a supposed national title contender shouldn’t have on their resumés. Only beating a terrible Michigan team by two is defensible given it was the first game of the year and it was on the road. Winning by three over a 4-win New Mexico team that fired their coach after the season is far less than impressive. Oregon State couldn’t close out a game at Utah with under a minute left and Utah promptly took advantage. It’s what great teams do. 

2008 = The Year of the Ute. 

People

Wait, where did everybody go? The Utes lose starting QB Brian Johnson to graduation (amongst unconfirmed rumors of an AC/DC tour), the three starting receivers, star DE Paul Kruger early to the draft, two starters on the OL, a rotation RB, a defensive tackle, and both starting corners. Kruger’s supposed weakside replacement, blue chip JC transfer James Aiono, also won’t be making it to the SLC until next season. 

The strength of the team looks to be the returning linebackers, led by OLB Stevenson Sylvester (I checked, it’s not backwards). It’ll be a season of opponents both attacking what should be a more conservative offensive attack and throwing against an inexperienced Ute secondary. 

On the coaching front, they lose offensive coordinator Andy Ludwig, though some (ahem) may argue the validity of the term “loss” here. The good news is that the Utah head coach job appears to be a destination gig for Kyle Whittingham, which is always an advantage when your team is forced to swim against the current in a skewed system. 

This Year

They open with two wins against Utah State and San Jose State. SJSU has improved under Dick Tomey, but Utah should be able to get a win after USC toys with the Spartans the week before. As nice as it was to beat Oregon six years ago (and inspire the Ducks to move to the spread), Eugene doesn’t look to be pretty for a rebuilding team. 

Louisville is a winnable home game, Colorado State is a bowl team that could pose problems on the road. Frankly, a game at UNLV followed by three straight at home against Air Force, Wyoming, and New Mexico should all yield victories. 

The tail end of the schedule has the Utes on the road against TCU and BYU teams that can’t be terribly pleased about losing in Salt Lake City last year. There’s a small shot against TCU, but the Holy War at BYU won’t be pretty. 

Conclusion

The personnel losses are significant, but outside of three brutal road games at Oregon, TCU, and BYU, the Utes have a reasonable opportunity to minimize their fall from last season’s unprecedented grace. Breaking in new corners is never fun, but the passing in the Mountain West is essentially limited to Max Hall and BYU … though it is A LOT of passing. 

The Prediction

8-4

Highlights Set to Unfortunate Music

-Dan