TEC's College Football Top 10, Week 6 (a day late)

Preseason rankings are debatable, if not borderline controversial. But not only have Oklahoma done nothing to lose the top spot they've had from the beginning, the Sooners proved their worth beyond any question during their annual neutral site "shootout" over the weekend with a 38-point win over then-undefeated Texas. Accordingly the Crimson & Cream tighten their grip on #1, the Longhorns fall out of the top 10 after just one week, and Arkansas takes their place in the rankings after recent consecutive wins over nationally ranked opponents.

In addition, LSU's 30-point victory over Florida was slightly more impressive than Alabama's 34-point shutout win over a better-than-expected Vanderbilt squad that could make another bowl run. Thus 'bama and Louisiana State swap positions but remain in easy striking distance of Oklahoma. Yet something will have to give when these two titans of the Southeastern Conference meet on November 5. Dude, it's gonna be awesome.

1. Oklahoma (def. Texas, 55-17), 5-0, 635 pts.
2. Louisiana State (def. Florida, 41-11), 6-0, 620 pts.
3. Alabama (def. Vanderbilt, 34-0), 6-0, 615 pts.
4. Stanford (def. Colorado, 48-7), 5-0, 570 pts.
5. Wisconsin (Bye), 5-0, 545 pts.
6. Boise State (def. Fresno State, 57-7), 5-0, 500 pts.
7. Oklahoma State (def. Kansas, 70-28), 5-0, 445 pts.
8. Clemson (def. Boston College, 36-14), 6-0, 410 pts.
9. Michigan (def. Northwestern, 42-24), 6-0, 345 pts.
10. Arkansas (def. Auburn, 38-14), 5-1, 315 pts.

A nice panoramic of Neyland Stadium in Knoxville, TN. Go Vols!
(Original source unknown, click to enlarge)

TEC's 2011 Preseason College Football Top 10

I've never had much use for preseason college football polls because they are historically comprised of gut feelings by those who base their estimations on hype that is largely concentrated upon a criterion of returning starters and unproven recruits.  A year-by-year comparison of national polls, from the start any particular season to the final tally, proves the unreliability of these long-standing traditions in foretelling who the best of the best really are beyond any question.

My 5,000-point system of ranking has proven as good as any other yardstick over the previous two seasons.  And because I am hindered by neither the media nor the NCAA, The Eccentric Conservative has brought the Top 10 back for a third season.

Here's the way it looks going into Week 1:

1. Oklahoma, 650 pts.

2. Alabama, 625 pts.

3. Oregon, 590 pts.

4. Boise State, 565 pts.

5. Louisiana State, 530 pts.

6. Stanford, 505 pts.

7. Florida State, 450 pts.

8. Texas A&M, 400 pts.

9. Wisconsin, 355 pts.

10. Oklahoma State, 330 pts.

Contender watch list: Nebraska, South Carolina, Virginia Tech, Arkansas, Texas Christian

In addition, only three Heisman winners since 1950 were not positioned in the offensive backfield: Tim Brown won as a wide receiver at Notre Dame in 1987.  Desmond Howard did the same at Michigan in 1991, and fellow Wolverine Charles Woodson followed in 1997 as the first defensive player to win the coveted trophy.

The trend of offensive recipients is likely to continue.  Hence the Heisman watchlist (alphabetically, with last season's stats) is as follows:

* Edwin Baker, RB, Michigan State (1,201 rush. yards, 5.8 ypc, 13 TD)

* Ryan Broyles, WR, Oklahoma (131 rec., 1,622 rec. yards, 14 TD)

* LaMichael James, RB, Oregon (1,731 rush. yards, 5.9 ypc, 21 TD)

* Landry Jones, QB, Oklahoma (4,718 pass. Yards, 38 TD, 65.6 comp. %)

* Marcus Lattimore, RB, South Carolina (1,197 rush. yards, 4.8 ypc, 17 TD)

* Andrew Luck, QB, Stanford (3,338 pass. yards, 32 TD, 70.7 comp. %)

* Kellen Moore, QB, Boise State (3,845 pass. yards, 35 TD, 71.3 comp. %)

* Trent Richardson, RB, Alabama (700 rush. yards, 6.3 ypc, 6 TD)

* Denard Robinson, QB, Michigan (2,570 pass. yards, 1,702 rush. yards, 32 total TD)

* Brandon Weeden, QB, Oklahoma State (4,277 pass. yards, 34 TD, 66.9 comp. %)

This season cannot get started soon enough.

 c/o Smokey's Trail

I'm feeling a bit nostalgic for The Great Pumpkin.  In a little over 16 seasons, former University of Tennessee head coach Phillip Fulmer managed a combined 48-3 conference record against Kentucky, Mississippi State, Ole Miss, South Carolina and Vanderbilt.

Along with career splits versus Auburn and Louisiana State, Fulmer also went 9-2 against Arkansas, 10-5 against Georgia and 11-3 against arch rival Alabama.  Eight bowl wins, six division and two conference titles along with a national championship made him great.  And he never cheated.  Go Vols!

Iconic Shot: Hank & The General

Original source unknown

I become nostalgic for college football around this time every year. Correction: I remain wistful for college football practically year-round, but I digress.

In this shot, University of Tennessee head coach Robert Neyland (right) and consensus All-American running back Hank Lauricella examine their Longhorn opponents during the Cotton Bowl on January 1, 1951. Lauricella finished runner-up in the Heisman voting earlier that season. He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1981.

With 173 wins, seven conference titles, four national championships, and a career .829 winning percentage, Coach Neyland (also a U.S. Army Brigadier General) remains the most successful coach in Tennessee football history.

And by the way, the Volunteers defeated Texas on this particular day, 20-14.

Did You Know (or Care): The Tennessee Volunteers

Tennessee is known as the "Volunteer State" for the disproportionately large number of Tennesseans who volunteered for duty in the American Revolution, the War of 1812, the Texas Revolution and the Mexican-American War, not to mention the considerable number of citizens who fought on either side of the Civil War.  The University itself was dubbed "Volunteers" for the first time in 1902 by the Atlanta Constitution following a football game against Georgia Tech, although the defunct Knoxville Journal and Tribune did not use the moniker until 1905.

Iconic Shot: The 1956 Tennessee Volunteers

Ending the year ranked #2 in the nation behind an Oklahoma Sooner team in the midst of what would become a record 47-game winning streak (from '53-'57), the '56 Vols won the Southeastern Conference championship and finished with a 10-1 record.

Featuring a native son at tailback, Johnny Majors (#45) finished second in voting for the Heisman Trophy behind Notre Dame's Paul Hornung.  It marks the only time in the award's 75-year history that a player from a losing team has won the coveted award (the Fighting Irish went 2-8).  Over 50 years have passed, and many among the Volunteer faithful remain less than pleased about the snub.

And another for good measure...

A two-time Southeastern Conference MVP as a player, Johnny Majors led the Pittsburgh Panthers to a national championship as head coach in 1976.  He returned to his alma mater the following year, ultimately compiling a .645 winning percentage en route to three SEC titles and victories in seven bowl games.

This picture from 1982 (source unknown) is from the Vols' 35-28 victory in Knoxville over Paul "Bear" Bryant and the Alabama Crimson Tide.  It was the first win for Majors in six tries against the legendary Bryant, who retired at season's end and died the following January.

Sunday's Quote: Lane does it again

Just for the record, I was born 34 years ago today (5:07 a.m. to be exact) at St. Joseph's hospital in downtown Memphis.  I'm told my mom was in labor for a mere 30 minutes, as opposed to my aunt Judy, who labored with my cousin Angie for a whopping 25 hours.  I'm good like that.

Now considering my lifelong allegiance to the University of Tennessee -- rivaled only by my affection for Ole Miss -- and with the college football season rapidly approaching, I feel that a quote about perhaps the greatest villain in UT history would be in order:

"Unless USC head coach Lane Kiffin was Ulysses S. Grant or William Tecumseh Sherman in a past life, it would be difficult to imagine how the good people of Tennessee could hate him anymore than they already did.  Until now."

-- from the opening to "Lane Kiffin angers everyone in Tennessee (slight return)" by Doug Farrar

You really do suck.

Lame Kitten

I found this rather fitting (despite the misplaced apostrophe).  With all the charisma of a detached, smug little brat who never wanted the UT job to begin with, I knew there was something about this guy that didn't feel right.  I hoped to be wrong, but at least now we know.

Best of luck to his predecessor... what's his name?