By
Pete Fiutak
-
2006 Big 12 Spring Analysis
-
2007 Preseason Lookaheads -
Big 12
North
Colorado
Spring Practice
Begins: March 12 Game: April 14
The early spring buzz ... While there were many offensive
breakdowns last season, the line wasn't
one of them doing a decent job of
getting a push for the running game. The
pass protection wasn't there, but that
had as much to do with QB Bernard
Jackson's scrambling as much as anything
else. Even so, Jeff Grimes was brought
in from BYU to take over the line duties
after doing a terrific job with the
Cougars over the last three years.
Former O line coach Chris Strausser is
off to Boise State.
The big spring question is ... Really, how bad was CU last
year? Bad, but it's not like the team
was totally miserable. The defense was
solid considering the offense didn't
provide any help, the running game was
good, and the kicking game was among the
best in the country. The return game was
miserable and there wasn't any passing,
but the Buffs still lost four games by
five points or fewer and blew out Texas
Tech. It might not take that much to get
to a bowl game.
The most important position to watch is ... Quarterback.
Bernard Jackson has the mobility and
experience, but he was awful throwing
the ball. The Buffs were 116th in the
nation in passing offense and 114th in
efficiency, and had a limited attack
since there weren't any viable options
other than Jackson. Cody Hawkins, the
coach's son and the team's top recruit
of 2006, is the future of the passing
game, while JUCO transfer Nick Nelson
could be a factor if he can make the
switch from a shotgun-spread offense to
a West Coast attack.
Spring attitude... 2006 is over. Lunatic rants aside, Hawkins
is a tremendous coach who isn't going to
come up with two lousy seasons in a row.
This isn't going to be a Big 12
champion, so the expectations for a
big-time turnaround have to be tempered,
but there's no reason for another losing
season as long as the passing attack is
a bit better.
Iowa State
Spring Practice
Begins: March 20 Game: April 14
The early spring buzz ... Iowa State got itself a gem. Gene
Chizik was the type of defensive
coordinator who ends up taking a head
coaching job at a big-time superpower or
NFL team, but he made the move to Ames
early on this off-season and is expected
to quickly become a superstar. The
program had become stale under Dan
McCarney, and now Chizik is being asked
to make Iowa State a Big 12 contender.
Now.
The big spring question is ... How far does the veteran team
have to go to be a contender? Probably
not as far as North rivals might like if
Chizik works his magic on the defense
right off the bat. The offense was
miserable all year long hurt most by
horrendous line play, but if the D can
use all the returning experience with
nine returning starters, to be better,
there could be a quick turnaround.
The most important position to watch is ... Offensive tackle.
Four starters are gone off an offensive
line that did absolutely nothing for the
running game and allowed a whopping 38
sacks. Aaron Brant and Scott Fisher were
big veterans who never progressed to the
level expected, and now they have to be
replaced on the outside. QB Bret Meyer
can be deadly if he gets time to work,
so pass protection will likely be the
first order of business once practice
starts.
Spring attitude... Get tougher. McCarney might have been
tough-as-nails and great at getting the
most out of his players, but his team
got shoved around all over the place
last season. Chizik is as intense as
they come and isn't going to stand for
anything less than getting his D at a
high level right away. Unfortunately,
he'll need a few recruiting seasons to
close the talent gap between ISU and the
better Big 12 teams.
Kansas
Spring Football
Begins: March 14 Game: April 14
The early spring buzz ... It's the fifth year under head coach
Mark Mangino, and while he's made KU
football respectable, he and his staff
haven't taken things to the level many
Jayhawk fans might have liked. He's not
on a hot seat by any stretch, but this
spring, he has to come up with a winning
season and a bowl game, and provide a
little bit of hope for being a North
title contender in the very near future,
or things could start to get a bit testy
next year.
The big spring question is ... Has anything been done about
the pass defense? KU sold out to get to
the quarterback with plenty of success,
but the corners were left on an island
and got ripped apart deep. Short to
midrange passes weren't an issue; it was
the deep ball that time and again ruined
KU against the better teams. Three
starters return to the secondary,
including All-Big 12 talent Aqib Talib,
but until there's better safety play to
provide help, offenses will keep bombing
away.
The most important position to watch is ... Quarterback.
Kerry Meier is the type of player the
program can build around, but he had a
hard time staying on the field having a
variety of injury issues, and Todd
Reesing showed a little bit of a spark
in the last month of the year. Both can
run and both can move the ball, but one
has to emerge as the main man this
spring or it'll be an interesting
summer. Mangino has never been afraid of
juggling his quarterbacks.
Spring attitude... Get back to a bowl. If KU can go 6-6 in a
rebuilding year, it should be able to
get back to the post-season with a
not-that-bad schedule. If the
quarterback situation is settled early
on, and an adequate replacement can be
found for RB Jon Cornish, 7-5 is a
realistic goal (even if Mangino and his
team will shoot far higher).
Kansas State
Spring Practice
Begins: March 16 Final Practice: April 21
The early spring buzz ... This is a big spring for a coaching
staff that underwent a major overhaul
this off-season losing defensive
coordinator Raheem Morris to the Tampa
Bay Buccaneers, along with running backs
coach Tim Horton for Air Force and
strength and conditioning coach Rod Cole
to Texas A&M. Tim Tibesar moves from
special teams to defensive coordinator,
Frank Leonard takes over for canned
tight ends coach James Jones, Mike Kent
replaces Cole, and Wes McGriff will
handle the defensive backs. It might
take a few practices before things run
smoothly, especially switching the
defense from the 4-3 to the 3-4.
The big spring question is ... How much better is Josh Freeman going
to be? Thrown to the fire as a true
freshman, the talented quarterback
struggled early on only to explode late.
He kept his cool in the win over Texas
and was good against Colorado, but he
only threw six touchdown passes (all in
three games) and 15 interceptions on the
year and was mediocre in the final two
games. This is his team this spring, and
he has to be more consistent to show he
can be the leader and playmaker the
program can rally around.
The most important position to watch is ... Kicker. The
linebacker situation will eventually be
fine despite the loss of Zach Diles and
Brandon Archer, but the real key to the
season could be at placekicker where
Jeff Snodgrass is gone after hitting 17
of 24 field goals and all 32 of his
extra points. KSU won three games by
four points or fewer, and is certain to
be in many tight battles again, so
someone, possible kickoff man Jared
Parker, has to be the man coming out of
spring ball.
Spring attitude... If Ron Prince could do that in his
first year in what was supposed to be a
rebuilding season, what can he and his
staff do with a veteran team that should
be appreciably better? Outside of the
Texas shocker, KSU beat most of the
teams it was supposed to, lost to the
teams it was supposed to, and turned out
a better record than expected.
Maintaining an even keel early on is
vital with trips to Auburn and Texas, a
tough home date against San Jose State,
and a rivalry battle against Kansas in
the first five games.
Missouri
Spring Practice
Begins: March 13 Game: April 21
The early spring buzz ... Jazzed up as the program was last year
after a scintillating bowl win over
South Carolina, now it's a different
attitude after the 39-38 Sun Bowl
collapse to Oregon State to close out
the year with four losses in five games
after a strong start. The 2007 second
half schedule isn't all that bad (Iowa
State, at Colorado, Texas A&M, Kansas
State and Kansas), and the start is nice
and light (Illinois, at Ole Miss,
Western Michigan and Illinois State), so
the program has to maintain its focus
during a three-game middle stretch
against Nebraska, at Oklahoma and Texas
Tech to be in the hunt for the Big 12
title.
The big spring question is ... Will the special teams be
better? The offense should be among the
Big 12's most productive, and the
defense should be solid with seven
starters returning, but the special
teams have to be far, far better, and
could be the difference between a North
title and also-ran status yet again. PK
Jeff Wolfert was fantastic, but punter
Adam Crossett struggled and the return
game was non-existent averaging 7.48
yards per punt return and 17.08 yards
per kickoff return.
The most important position to watch is ... The right side of
the offensive line. Everything is in
place from the nation's eighth best
offense last season except the line with
guard Mike Cook and tackle Joel Clinger
gone. There might be some shuffling done
this spring, but it would help if senior
Monte Wyrick and sophomore Dain Wise
could step in and be solid right away.
On defense, Sean Weatherspoon has to be
ready to take over for Dedrick
Harrington in the middle.
Spring attitude... Win the North. It's time. It was time last
year. Head coach Gary Pinkel is going
into his seventh season with a loaded
team with explosion, depth and
experience, and he has a good enough
schedule, helped by Nebraska coming to
Columbia, to be in the Big 12 title
game. Anything less will be a major
disappointment and might show there's a
ceiling on what Pinkel can do.
Nebraska
Spring Practice
Begins: March 21 Game: April 14
The early spring buzz ... There's an excitement around the
program there hasn't been since Bill
Callahan took over for Frank Solich
three years ago. The team is loaded with
veterans on offense, should be fine in
the defensive back seven, and has a
schedule that anyone with national title
aspirations would drool over. If this
isn't the big season the program's been
pushing towards ever since it got
whacked by Miami in the 2002 Rose Bowl,
and at the very least, if there isn't a
second straight trip to the Big 12
Championship, there could be some
grumblings.
The big spring question is ... Can Nebraska actually beat the elite?
There were four games against top-flight
teams (USC, Texas, Oklahoma and Auburn)
and Nebraska lost all five, along with a
41-29 clunker to Oklahoma State. To be
Nebraska again, the wins have to
start coming against the elite; being
competitive isn't quite enough. There
are only two monstrous games on the
slate this season (USC and at Texas),
and the Huskers have to at least split.
The most important position to watch is ... Quarterback.
There's plenty of excitement about the
offense's possibilities with Arizona
State transfer Sam Keller stepping in at
quarterback to potentially provide a
talent upgrade over All-Big 12 performer
Zac Taylor. However, Joe Ganz, who's
been waiting in the wings over the last
few years, isn't just going to hand over
the job. Keller is a big, NFL type of
passer, while Ganz is a smaller, quicker
option who knows the offense cold. This
might turn out to be more interesting
battle than many will make it out to be.
Spring attitude... Time to become a national powerhouse
again. The Huskers made big strides in
Callahan's second season, and took an
even bigger step in year three winning
the North and getting to the Big 12
title game. Even so, it was still a
mediocre season by past standards going
9-5. Even though the Missouri game is on
the road, a second straight North title
is a must, and a flirtation with a
national title chase, is a realistic
dream.
South
Baylor
Spring Practice
Begins: March 20 Game: April 14
The early spring buzz ... There's a little bit of shuffling among
the coaching staff that might make a
difference right off the bat. Cornell
Jackson, who did a tremendous job
coaching the New Mexico running backs,
was brought aboard to work with a group
that led the way to the nation's worst
ground game. Part of the problem was the
offense, but the talent was also an
issue. Losing defensive coordinator Bill
Bradley to the San Diego Chargers might
not seem like that big a deal, but his
defenses were great (at times) at taking
the ball away.
The big spring question is ... Will there be any sort of a
pass rush? Larry Hoefer, who handled the
BU safeties for the last six seasons,
will be the new defensive coordinator.
While stopping the run might be a major
priority, getting to the quarterback
will be vital. 11 sacks aren't nearly
enough to throw a wrinkle into anyone's
passing game. Unearthing a pass rusher
this spring is a must or else the D will
have to get funky before fall to
generate more pressure.
The most important position to watch is ... Quarterback.
There's work to do on defense and help
needed for the offense, particularly on
the line, but the fortunes of the Baylor
season rest on the quarterback
situation. When Shawn Bell played, BU
was dangerous. When he was hurt and out,
BU wasn't even close. Now he's gone, and
while Blake Szymanski has the experience
after seeing time late last year, and
has the tools to grow into a good one,
the real excitement is over JUCO
transfer John David Weed, who's 6-5, 235
pounds and the type of passer who can
make the Bear attack fly.
Spring attitude... Keep improving. Baylor is stuck. While the
program might be far better under head
coach Guy Morriss, it just so happens to
play in what this season might be the
nation's best division. The passing game
and the new offense started to take off,
and there was some success early on.
This won't be a winning season, and
it'll take a major upset to be anything
other than last place in the South, but
that doesn't mean the program can't keep
getting better to be more competitive
against the top Big 12 teams.
Oklahoma
Spring Practice
Begins: March 5 Game: April 8
The early spring buzz ... After spending the last few months as the
Apollo Creed to Boise State's Rocky, and
the program that everyone outside of the
greater Norman area rooted against
during the Fiesta Bowl, the motivation
will be there for the defending Big 12
champions to be even better. Nine
starters return on offense, eight come
back on defense, and kicker Garrett
Hartley might be the best in the nation.
The big spring question is ... Who'll be at quarterback?
Running back? More than fine with Allen
Patrick, Jacob Gutierrez and Chris Brown
returning along with the expected
emergence of redshirt freshmen DeMarco
Murray and Mossis Madu. Wide receiver?
One of the best in the country with
Malcolm Kelly and Juaquin Iglesias
leading the way. The offensive line
should be tremendous. Now a quarterback
has to emerge to replace the steady Paul
Thompson. Junior Joey Halzle has the
practice experience as the number two
man last season, but he'll have to fight
off Sam Bradford and Keith Nichol for
the job. The job is as wide open as it
gets.
The most important position to watch is ... Defensive end.
Along with quarterback, defensive end
will be the biggest issue throughout
spring ball after losing Larry Birdine,
C.J. Ah You, and Calvin Thibodeaux.
While they weren't the pass rushing
terrors they were expected to be, they
were rock-solid pieces of the Big 12's
best defense. The secondary should be
excellent with all four starters
returning, and they could be dominant if
they get help from the pass rush.
Spring attitude... Win the national title. Amazingly, the
Sooners might even better even after
losing their starting quarterback and
soon-to-be NFL superstar Adrian
Peterson, and the schedule is
tailor-made for a national title run
with Miami, Missouri, Oklahoma State and
Texas A&M all at home, and the road
slate (Tulsa, Colorado, Iowa State and
Texas Tech) as light as possible.
Barring a total collapse, or another
fluky Oregon-like loss, it might be a
one game season against that team from
Austin.
Oklahoma State
Spring Practice
Begins: March 5 Game: April 14
The early spring buzz ... If you want the sleeper for the Big 12
title, Oklahoma State might be it.
There's plenty of excitement for a
program that gets eight starters back on
offense, the entire defensive back
seven, and both kickers. This should be
an explosive team that cranks out huge
offensive numbers and throws a
mega-scare into the normal Big 12 big
boys, along with Georgia for the season
opener.
The big spring question is ... Can the secondary be just a
big tighter? By design, the OSU defense
gives up big plays to try to make big
plays, but if the Cowboy defensive backs
can be just a little bit better and a
little bit tighter, the coaching staff
can take more chances when it comes to
generating pressure and flying to the
ball. Helping out the secondary would be
a steady pass rush from the front four,
which is why ...
The most important position to watch is ... Defensive tackle.
Four starters are gone, but the ends are
fine with Nathan Peterson a terror of a
speed rusher who has All-Big 12
potential if he can prove he can handle
the full-time starting role. Marque
Fountain is also great at getting into
the backfield after spending last season
rotating with Victor DeGrate. Tackle is
the big issue needing JUCO transfer
Tonga Tea to shine right away as the
leader of an inexperienced, but
interesting group. Senior Maurice
Cummings and junior Jeray Chatham will
likely be the starters coming out of
spring ball.
Spring attitude... Don't just be an also-ran. After putting
up points as well as anyone in the
country and being nasty at getting into
the backfield on defense, and with so
much young talent returning, anything
less than another bowl season and a few
wins over some of the better teams are a
must. This is about to become one of the
nation's new "it" teams.
Texas
Spring Practice
Begins: Feb. 23 Game: March 31
The early spring buzz ... It's Texas. It loses a superstar assistant
coach; it gets another superstar
assistant coach. Mack Brown didn't go
outside the program after losing
defensive coordinator Gene Chizik to
Iowa State, he upgraded Duane Akina to
the full-time main man for the defense
after combining forces with Chizik. He
might lose three stars in the secondary,
but he has the front seven to be
fantastic right away. The offense gets
almost all the key skill players back,
so it might be another national title or
bust type of season.
The big spring question is ... What the heck was that with
the pass defense? Aaron Ross won the
Thorpe Award, Michael Griffin will be a
millionaire after the NFL Draft, and
Tarell Brown will also be playing on
Sundays. So how the heck did this group
get burnt so badly so often? Texas
wasn't just bad against the pass, it was
one of the worst in the nation short,
long, and everywhere in between. Much
will be made out of the replacement
defensive backs, but the overall
production can't be any worse.
The most important position to watch is ... Backup
quarterback. Considering how the team's
Big 12 and national title dreams went
into the tank after Colt McCoy hurt
himself against Kansas State, and with
Jevan Snead transferring, the number two
quarterback gig will be vital. McCoy is
a burgeoning star, but he'll have to
give way reps to get Sherrod Harris and
John Charles some good work. Harris is
more mobile than McCoy, while Chiles is
still learning the ropes after being
considered for the receiving corps.
Spring attitude... Win the Big 12 title and hope everything
else falls into place. There's no Ohio
State on the non-conference schedule
(but TCU is a dangerous, dangerous home
game in early September), so if the
Longhorns make amends for last year's
collapse and win the Big 12
championship, they'll likely be in the
discussion for a trip to New Orleans.
It's not going to be easy playing five
of the final seven games away from home.
Texas A&M
Spring Practice
Begins: March 19 Game: April 14
The early spring buzz ... 2006 was the bounceback year for the
program, and a job saving campaign for
Dennis Franchione. Now the excitement is
through the roof with all the skills
stars back and seven starters back on
defense. The win over Texas was great,
but getting steamrolled by Cal in the
Holiday Bowl put a serious damper on the
year and showed how far the program
might have to go before it's elite. If
everything breaks right, this is the
year the program could take that next
step to being where A&M fans want it to
go.
The big spring question is ... Will there be a pass rush? The
defense was decent all season long, but
there was little to no push into the
backfield finishing last in the Big 12
in tackles for loss while only
generating just 20 sacks. While the
Aggies will take any overall production
after years of poor defensive play, they
can't take the next step and become a
threat for the Big 12 title unless they
start to hit the quarterback on a
regular basis.
The most important position to watch is ... Placekicker.
There are big personnel losses here and
there, but the difference between a good
year and a tremendous one might come
down to if someone steps in and becomes
an adequate replacement for Layne
Neumann, who hit 12 of 15 field goal
attempts. Matt Szymanski was the backup
last year and has a big leg, but he only
hit two of five shots.
Spring attitude... Get hot right off the bat. The Aggies
should be better, but they'd better be
great out of the gate or there could be
big problems. Outside of a date at
Miami, A&M has a good first half of the
season with five home games that all
have to be wins. The scheduling gods
come down like a hammer with four road
trips to Texas Tech, Nebraska, Oklahoma
and Missouri before finishing up with
Texas.
Texas Tech
Spring Practice
Begins: March 21 Game: April 16
The early spring buzz ... This might be a year things slow down a
little bit before blowing up in 2008.
With massive replacements needed on the
offensive line, the receiving corps, and
the defensive front seven, and with the
South being far better than in past
seasons, it's going to take Mike Leach's
best coaching job yet to get his team
back to the level Red Raider fans are
used to.
The big spring question is ... Who'll step in for the four
starters on the offensive line? It might
not be all that bad after a little bit
of time. New line coach Jack Bicknell
has the pieces to work with, but he'll
have to play around with things to find
the right combination. Marlon Winn has
all the talent to be a star at left
tackle, while Brandon Carter appears
ready to shine at right guard. Right
tackle is likely to be the biggest issue
if Rylan Reed and Adrian Archie can't
produce right away this spring.
The most important position to watch is ... Wide receiver.
180 catches, 2,171 yards, and 24
touchdown catches are gone with the
departure of Joel Filani and Robert
Johnson. Danny Amendola is a serviceable
target and L.A. Reed and Todd Walker
have potential, but for the offense to
shine, Michael Crabtree has to turn into
a number one target (if Reed isn't ready
for the role).
Spring attitude... Business as usual. It might take a year
before Tech becomes a major player in
the South race, but the offense will
still put up its points and there will
still be wow moments. However, with all
the personnel turnover, this could be a
maddeningly inconsistent year.
