Recap and Look Ahead

The three main dogs in the fight for the national title are still alive after week seven of the NCAA football season. All three of them had to fight to survive and they did not look pretty doing it. However, as I have said before, all you have to do is be the best team in the stadium every Saturday. So far, Florida, Alabama and Texas have done what is required. If they don't start playing a little better, that might not be the case.

Thoughts From the Couch
-Since when is it okay for Notre Dame to just compete? I have heard a lot of Notre Dame fans saying, "At least we didn't get blown out." Notre Dame's starting center was quoted as saying, "At least it wasn't 38-0." Charlie Weis was happy with his team's fight and that they played hard for 60 minutes. Did he hand out juice boxes and rice krispy treats after game too? This is supposed to be one of the best programs in the country and this is Charlie Weis' fifth season. It was okay for IU basketball to just compete last season because it was Tom Crean's first season. Charlie Weis has not beaten anybody in his tenure at Notre Dame. He does not have a signature victory. If I were a Notre Dame fan, the "close loss" on Saturday was a disaster because it wasn't a win but it probably wasn't enough to convince the ND administration a change is needed. Matt Barkley torched the Irish secondary and USC's personal foul penalties made this game close. Happy to compete, oh how the Irish have fallen.

-Good win for Clemson and Dabo Swinney. He needed a victory to call of the hounds and they pounded Wake Forest 38-3.

-Don't pay attention to the BCS yet. Everything always works itself out and if a team is not worthy of being in the top two, they will be proven fraudulent. We don't need to look at the BCS standings until mid-November.

-Great win for Cincinnati on Thursday night. Tony Pike left in the third quarter but the Bearcats rolled over South Florida for a surprisingly convincing win. They are climbing towards the top five and could fulfill my prediction of an unbeaten season.

Kudos
-Mark Ingram was a beast as the Alabama Crimson Tide wore down South Carolina. Ingram ran for 246 yards and a touchdown in the 20-6 victory. Greg McElroy struggled and Julio Jones has yet to get on track. The defense is nasty but Ingram is looking like the best running back in the country. The sophomore has vaulted up the Heisman rankings and if the Crimson Tide stay unbeaten (they will), he might steal the spotlight from the quarterbacks.

-Kudos to Danny Hope and the Purdue Boilermakers. Purdue had lost five in a row and appeared headed for a dismal season. However, they were able to temporarily turn things around and shock the Ohio State Buckeyes in West Lafayette. I am amazed at how little progression Terrelle Pryor is making. He is making horrible decisions and the offense needs some major adjustments. Buckeye fans are calling for Jim Tressel to fire the offensive coordinator and the quarterbacks coach. They also want him to give up his play-calling duties. Don't count on their to be many changes made. However, their last three games are at Penn State, Iowa and at Michigan. I could easily see them losing two of those games. If they do, changes are in the works. Good win for Purdue though. Can they keep it up? Wait and see.

Shame On You
-The Nebraska Cornhuskers were supposed to be back. The fan base felt great about themselves after winning at Missouri. They were back at home taking on Texas Tech. That's when things fell apart. Texas Tech destroyed the Cornhuskers 31-10 in Lincoln. Nebraska had 12 penalties for 95 yards and trailed 24-3 at the half. Bo Pelini might bring the Huskers back, things aren't there yet.

-I really liked Kansas. They have been a very good so far this season. On Saturday, they lost 34-30 to Colorado. The loss throws the Big 12 North wide open and a division that was supposed to be making really good progress looks like garbage again. Who in this division is any good? Missouri is average, Kansas is decent, Nebraska is decent. Texas Tech is the fourth best team in the Big 12 South, they would win the Big 12 North.

Hoosier Hysteria
I am going to start my college basketball preview with a very light analysis of last season. IU basketball is my passion. Last season was painful for me and every other member of the Hoosier Nation. However, we saw the first building blocks of the future. The right leader is in place and I am confident the Hoosiers will return to national prominence in the near future. Is it going to be this year? No. Is it going to be next year? Probably not. I think Tom Crean's fourth season will be the first one where Hoosier fans can have realistic hopes for a Big Ten title. That is a ways off, let's focus on this squad.

The Hoosiers welcome seven newcomers to a team that won only six games last season. Georgetown transfer Jeremiah Rivers (two years left) joins six freshmen to form one of the country's top recruiting classes. Kyle Taber was the only loss from last year's team and his size and production is very replaceable. Devan Dumes was IU's best player during the first half of last season. However, Dumes struggled with injuries and his frustration negatively affected his play. Freshman guard Verdell Jones (VJIII) stepped up and emerged as a true talent. Jones played like an All-Big Ten player for significant stretches of the Big Ten season.

Turnovers were a huge issue and IU had way too many empty possessions to consistently win games. However, they played hard and I think Indiana fans were able to rally around the squad. The improvement from game one to the end of the season was very noticeable and IU fans are looking for a step up this season.

That is the only review I will do of last year. It is too painful to rehash what happened. Tomorrow, I will examine each incoming player and look at the impact they will have. Until then, stay vigilant and God Bless America.