2011 Spring Preview
- No. 18
Who Wants To Be An Indy?
Click for each team's spring preview
Army|
BYU
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Navy
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Notre Dame
2011 Spring Preview
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Top 50
Non-Conference Games (No. 1-10)
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Top 50
Non-Conference Games (No. 11-20)
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Top 50
Non-Conference Games (No. 21-30)
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Top 50
Non-Conference Games (No. 31-40)
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Top 50
Non-Conference Games (No. 41-50)
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No. 19
- Is a smaller Big 12 better?
By
Pete Fiutak
Oh yes, they were heady times for the Mountain West.
Utah might have been off to the Pac-12, but Boise State was on its way
to fill the spot and plans
were in the works to bring in Fresno State, Hawaii,
and Nevada. The MWC was finally going to have a
truly legitimate claim to being a real, live, BCS
conference worthy of an automatic bid. With TCU,
Boise State, and BYU as anchors, and with solid
programs filling in the midsection, it was about to
be time to come of age.
BYU wasn't so hot on the idea.
Before TCU decided to bail and go off to the Big
East in 2012, BYU quickly, and slightly under the
radar, chose to go it alone. With LDS
Church related cable and satellite stations ready to
form a built-in network, and with the ability to
create a terrific schedule that could put the
program in the national spotlight on a regular
basis, BYU made the big move to become an
independent, and it's not likely to be the last
school to willingly do so in the near future.
While many criticized the move as a school taking
its ball and going home after not being invited to
the Pac-12 party, BYU should end up making more
money from the deal, it should up its profile a bit,
rather than be lumped in with the rest of the
non-AQs, and it could position itself to be a
regular in the BCS discussion. Going 10-2 as a
Mountain West team doesn't get you close, but going
10-2 as an independent, if the two losses are
extremely strong, might bring a big money BCS game.
And then there's Notre Dame, who still holds the
ticket to any conference it wants to join. The Big
Ten, of course, would be the natural fit, and the
Big East would be the easiest move - being the
biggest fish in a medium pond, unlike the Big Ten -
but geography doesn't matter when it comes to the
Irish, but dollars might. The Irish brass continue
to love the independent lifestyle and cherish the
snob factor, and now there's no way the program is
going to make a major move to a conference when head
coach Brian Kelly has things on the upswing. Why
split the pie when a 10-2 season brings in all the
BCS money home? Even so, timing doesn't matter and
conference configurations don't matter. The SEC or
Pac-12 would go to 13 teams yesterday if it means
getting the Irish, and the Big Ten will always be
knocking on the door, even if the head honchos in
Park Ridge, Illinois deny having any real interest.
While the four current independent teams should
remain without a conference home for the foreseeable
future, the big storyline to keep an eye on over the
next few years will be Texas. By not making the big
move to the Pac-12 or the Big Ten, and with the Big
12 staying alive by the skin of its teeth last
offseason, the stage has been set for the Longhorns
to call their own shots an be catered to even more
than usual. Missouri, for one, has
always had a problem with the Big 12 being all about
Texas, and Nebraska apparently couldn't bolt fast
enough to the Big Ten after being asked. Now, if
there's going to be a Big 12 down the road, the
political and financial pressure will be put on to
keep UT in a conference when the money would be
coming in by the truckload if the school went
independent.
With a 20-year, $300 million dollar deal in place
with ESPN to form a Texas 24-hour network, the TV
and multi-media side of things is in place for UT to
go rogue and be its own entity, keeping the natural
rivalries with Oklahoma, Texas A&M, Texas Tech, and
Baylor, keeping the state politicians happy, while
also picking and choosing its own national games.
Like Notre Dame, Texas might like the idea of
keeping all its bowl money and not sharing with the
Big 12 also-rans.
For now, the independents are all going to be
interesting with Notre Dame about to be in the mix
for BCS game talk, BYU returning strong enough to
hang around the top 20 all year, and Navy and Army
destined for bowl games yet again. All will play fun
games throughout the season, all have entertaining
teams, and all are going to make independent life
look very, very nice.
The Top Five Independent Players Who Need A Big Spring
1. Tommy Rees, QB Notre Dame
2. Kriss Proctor, QB Navy
3. Lo Wood, CB Notre Dame
4. De'Von Richardson, S Navy
5. Riley Stephenson, PK/P BYU
The Top 5 Position Concerns/Battles
1. Notre Dame quarterback
2. Navy safety
3. Notre Dame running back
4. BYU defensive back
5. Army offensive line
The 5 Biggest Independent Spring Storylines
1. Who's going to play quarterback for the Irish?
Tommy Rees looked like a keeper over the second half
of last year, but Dayne Crist will be back from a
knee injury to work out a little bit. If Rees isn't
great, it'll be Crist's gig when he's ready to go.
2. Is Jake Heaps the real deal? The superstar BYU quarterback recruit played
like a true freshman last year at times, but he also
showed enough of a spark to think that he could be
the next great Cougar passer. It's his job without
question, and he needs to be great for the Cougars
to take a step forward.
3. Can Army beef up the lines quickly enough to
improve as a team? Black Knight spring ball is over,
and the lines needed the most work with so much
turnover. The offensive front appears to have come
together over the course of the spring, but the
defensive front still needs work. Overall, though,
things aren't that bad considering how many new
starters are in the mix.
4. Is Kriss Proctor as good as Ricky Dobbs? No, but
the new starting Navy quarterback is brilliant at
running the triple option and should be able to keep
the attack moving. He's not a passer like Dobbs, and
he doesn't bring any power inside, but he's
experienced and makes all the right reads. The
offense is his now.
5. How fast can the top Notre Dame recruits make an
impact? By the time the season starts, the buzz
about the Irish defensive front will be around Aaron
Lynch, Ishaq Williams, and Stephon Tuitt, three of
the mega-recruits from this year's class. The Irish
return three starters on the defensive front, but no
job will be safe unless the returning veterans are
terrific this spring.
The Pre-Spring Call For Top Independent Players
1. Manti Te'o, LB Notre Dame
2. Michael Floyd, WR Notre Dame
3. Matt Reynolds, OT BYU
4. Dayne Crist, QB Notre Dame
5. Kriss Proctor, QB Navy
The Spring Independent Team Rankings
1. Notre Dame
2. BYU
3. Navy
4. Army
Click for each team's spring preview
Army |
Navy
|
Notre Dame
2011 Spring Preview
-
Top 50
Non-Conference Games (No. 1-10)
-
Top 50
Non-Conference Games (No. 11-20)
-
Top 50
Non-Conference Games (No. 21-30)
-
Top 50
Non-Conference Games (No. 31-40)
-
Top 50
Non-Conference Games (No. 41-50)
-
No. 19
- Is a smaller Big 12 better?