Blogs With Balls Radio, Episode 29

Another abbreviated show this week, but a topical one as HuggingHaroldReynolds.com's College Football guru Wes the Cynic chats with NCAA football Hall of Famer, and thus far the first and only 2-time Heisman Trophy winner, Archie Griffin.

Blogs with Balls Show - Episode 29 by Blogs with Balls

While in town for tomorrow's ceremony at the Downtown Athletic Club, Griffin is also doing his part to promote the Wendy’s High School Heisman which celebrates high school seniors across the country who excel in academics, athletics and community leadership. Since the program’s start in 1994, more than 305,000 students have been recognized by the program for their outstanding achievements both on and off the field.

Wes presses him on whether or not their would be another multi-time winner, whether he voted for himself in 1975, his thoughts on Nebraska joining the Big 10, how character should be weighed in Heisman voting in light of Reggie Bush and Cam Newton controversy, and has Griffin make an Oregon-Auburn prediction.

For more information about the High School Heisman program and the nomination process, visit http://www.wendysheisman.com or contact your local high school principal, guidance counselor or athletic director. “Like” Wendy’s High School Heisman on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/wendyshighschoolheisman for program updates and to connect with alumni.

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The Cynic’s Guide to College Football: The Blogger’s Heisman

The good folks at The Blue Workhorse have put together the second annual “Sports Blog Heisman Trophy” and have solicited the votes of sports bloggers around the country to determine who should really win the Heisman. Never one to shy away from a challenge, I have accepted their invitation and have compiled my top 3 Heisman candidates. Before I reveal my finalists, some rules to explain my decision.

Rule #1: Numbers don’t mean everything. Sure, big numbers are nice but to me they do not tell the complete picture of a player. For example, if an opposing team has to gear their entire defense to stopping one guy, while that player may not put up monster numbers, he opens things up for his teammates and makes his team better. So if a guy you like didn’t make the list and you want to complain, you need something more than “he averaged 0.3 yards per carry more than ________.” Tell me what makes your guy a player.

Rule #2: Wins don’t mean everything. As a general rule, players having great seasons will carry their team to wins. However, outstanding players are not always surrounded by great supporting casts. Under the current system, many truly outstanding players are penalized for a loss that may be no fault of their own. If someone had a monster game in a loss, I won’t necessarily hold that loss against him.

Rule #3: The most deserving candidate probably won’t win. Sure, once in a while the real Heisman voters get it right. But more often than not, they don’t. The current Heisman voting system has gotten so out of whack that the award has basically become a trophy for the Most Photogenic (Preferably White) Skill Position Player on a BCS Top 5 Team. That’s why most of the “expert” Heisman polls still show Colt McCoy and Tim Tebow near the top of the list, despite other players having better years. I don’t think that’s how it should be. With my choices I will try as best I can to judge who are the most outstanding players, regardless of position or BCS standings. This is not my attempt to predict who will win; it’s my belief about who should win.

So with that, here are my three finalists:

#1: Ndamukong Suh, DT, Nebraska

Very simply, Suh is the most dominant defensive player in a generation. There just aren't enough superlatives to describe this guy. Think about this—as a defensive tackle, Suh still led the Cornhuskers in tackles (good), sacks (impressive) and kicks blocked (uh, say what?). His 11 passes defended would rank him as a top-50 DB (are you freakin’ kidding me?). And yet the numbers only tell half the story, as the double-teams and plays designed to run away from him made the players around him even better (Nebraska finished 9th in total defense and 2nd in scoring defense). His quickness and natural instincts would be impressive for a man half his size. But for somebody who is 6’4” and 300 pounds to be making those kind of plays is downright scary. Unfortunately, Suh’s candidacy is being unfairly brought down by an atrocious Nebraska offense. If the Husker offense was average or even sub-par, as opposed to shockingly atrocious, Nebraska would be in a BCS bowl and possibly getting ready to play Alabama in the title game. While there are a lot of good players in contention for this year’s Heisman, Suh is the only player on the board that we’ll still be talking about 20 years from now.

Suh had 12 tackles, 7 tackles for loss and 4.5 sacks in the Big 12 Championship Game. That is a Heisman performance.

#2: Case Keenum, QB, Houston

While his numbers are impressive, what intrigues me most about Keenum is his ability to step up in tough situations. He engineered early season upsets of Oklahoma State and Texas Tech. And, most tellingly, look at his numbers in Houston’s three losses: 1440 yards, 13 TDs and 4 INTs. You certainly can’t pin those losses on Keenum, and he did just about anything anyone could ask of him to keep his team in the games.


#3: Toby Gerhart, RB, Stanford

I’m a sucker for a guy who can take their whole team and carry them on his back, and that’s exactly the player Gerhart was this year. Sure, I know Ingram had a higher YPC average (see Rule #1 above), but Gerhart almost singlehandedly willed Stanford to an 8 win season and kept running hard in four tough losses. Most of all, he showed up every week (only one game with less than 80 yards and one game with no scores) and had an eye-popping nine multi-TD games. Without Gerhart, Stanford would be home for the holidays instead of taking on Oklahoma in a bowl game.

Gerhart hopes to be the second sophomore to carry home the Heisman in three years.

Honorable Mention: CJ Spiller, RB, Clemson

It was really hard for me to leave Spiller off the list, as I love his ability to score from anywhere on the field. He’s the stuff of nightmares for opposing defensive and special teams coaches. But in the end I felt that Gerhart had been a more consistent offensive threat throughout the season.

So there you go. The three most outstanding players in college football in 2009. Agree? Disagree? Feel free to post your comments.

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Tim Tebow Brings Visions of Terry Baker

When Kentucky coach Rich Brooks thinks Tim Tebow, he's reminded of his old Oregon State teammate and former Heisman winner Terry Baker. Obviously.

Via One Great Season...

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Today in History

Today marks the 15th anniversary of the greatest Bababooey call in history. Oh yeah, and a former Heisman Trophy winner and Pro Football Hall of Famer, OJ Simpson of Nordberg fame, went on the lam in LA in a white Bronco.

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The Cynic's Guide to College Football: Hardware

"On the first day of Heisman, my true love gave to me a Bronco Na-gur-ski."

The chill in the air. The festive lights decorating everything. The (hopefully) background checked guys with small children lined up to sit on their lap. Ah, it's the most wonderful time of the year--awards season!

Several of the big awards have already been given out, including the Wuerffel Trophy which, much to my surprise, is not an award for "Player Most Likely to Not Succeed in the NFL But Still Be the Subject of a Peter King Mancrush."

I swear I didn't photoshop this. This is the actual trophy that will sit next to the Heisman in Tim Tebow's trophy case.

So on this festive Heisman Eve, I give you the Cynic's Awards for 2008.

Most Outstanding Player
Sam Bradford, QB, Oklahoma

Bradford's kinda creepy--he almost makes it look too easy. He's as smooth and cool as any QB you will ever find. I've ever seen anyone--at any level--who throws a prettier deep ball. It's almost like he's not human, like he was sent back through time to destroy NCAA passing records or something.

Your 2029 Heisman Trophy Winner

Honorable mention: Tim Tebow (QB, Florida); Rey Maualuga (LB, USC)

Most Valuable Player
Colt McCoy, QB, Texas

It's hard to overlook what McCoy meant to Texas. Not only did he put up excellent passing numbers (3445 yards, 32 TDs, 7 INTs), but he was also the Longhorns leading rusher (576 yards and 10 TDs). Other QBs may have put up stronger numbers, but no player in college football meant more to his team this year than McCoy. Without Colt McCoy at the helm, Texas is a five loss team headed down the road to the Alamo Bowl instead of the BCS.

McCoy might not win the Heisman. But being Colt McCoy still doesn't suck.

(Photo courtesy of--and more shots of Colt's girl available at--Double Extra Point)

Honorable Mention: Shonn Greene (RB, Iowa); Daryll Clark (QB, Penn State)

Freshman of the Year
Jacquizz Rodgers, RB, Oregon State

Let's face it: without Rodgers, Oregon State wouldn't have even made a blip on the radar screen this year and the Pac-10 would have been even more boring than usual, as USC ran away with the division by three games. Rodgers not only made watching the Pac-10 bearable, he almost singlehandedly (186 yards and 2 TDs) kept the Trojans out of the BCS title game.

(Random side note: am I the only one who finds it interesting the Rodgers parents named one boy James and one boy Jacquizz? One gets a normal-sounding red-blooded name. The other gets a name that sounds like a new energy drink or a bad euphemism for some kind of bodily fluid.)

Look out Red Bull, here comes Jacquizz!

Honorable Mention: Robert Griffin (QB, Baylor); Julio Jones (WR, Alabama); Terrelle Pryor (QB, Ohio State)

Coach of the Year
Tie: Paul Johnson, Georgia Tech and Turner Gill, Buffalo

I know a tie is a cop out, but I really couldn't come up with an objective way to decide between these two.

I'll admit it--I had my doubts about whether triple option football a la service academy could work at the BCS level. And I really, really doubted it could work for Johnson in year one when he was using players who'd been recruited to run a very different offense. So I give Johnson all the credit in the world for taking Georgia Tech to a 9-3 mark this season. How successful was Johnson's option attack? The Yellow Jackets beat archrival Georgia 45-42 after putting up 409 rushing yards, but completing just one pass!

As for Gill, all he did was lead Buffalo to their best season since going I-A and their first MAC championship. Honestly, how many of you thought you'd live long enough to see the words "Buffalo" and "championship" in the same sentence without the words "Bills will never win a" coming in between? If you can win at Buffalo, you can win anywhere and, if not this year, then very soon Gill will have his pick of much, much higher profile jobs.

Buffalo and championship? Believe it.

Honorable Mention: Nick Saban, Alabama

Rookie of the Year
Bo Pelini, Nebraska

There were 18 coaches in I-A this year who were new at their school. Of those, nine were first-time head coaches and Pelini by far led the biggest turnaround. Pelini took a team that was 5-7 a year ago, was completely downtrodden and had arguably the worst defense in Cornhusker history and made them a contender. Aside from blowout losses to Missouri and Oklahoma, Nebraska was competitive in every game, winning eight and falling in the last minute against #19 Virginia Tech and in OT at #7 Texas Tech.

Short version: if prior to the season, I'd said that the Cornhuskers would go 8-4, would be co-champs in the Big 12 North, would play hard every week and would be in a New Year's Day bowl game, Husker fans would have lined up to sign in blood. Pelini still has some work to do to get the Cornhuskers back to the national title contender level, but 2008 saw some very big steps in the right direction.

You're #$%^&$% right I'm Rookie of the %^&*%^& Year!

Honorable Mention: Jerry Kill (N. Illinois); Steve Fairchild (Colorado State)

Best Story
Matt Williams, K, Texas Tech

You know the story--you've seen it at least a half-dozen Disney sports movies over the years. Kid is picked in contest to kick field goal at halftime. He makes it and then gets a note that the football coach wants to see him. Coach asks him to walk on to the team. Kid ends up being the starting placekicker. Sure, the story's not original. But it's still fun. (And he actually did pretty well--a perfect 29-of-29 on PATs and 2-of-3 on FGs in five games played.) Now all the story needs is a last minute kick to win the big game. And maybe a football-playing monkey.

Steve Guttenberg should be available. Wonder if he'd be interested in playing Mike Leach.

Honorable Mention: Joe Paterno (almost) going undefeated; Oregon State (almost) running for the roses.

Biggest Disappointment (Player)
Chase Daniel, QB, Missouri

Let me say this up front--Daniel had a good year, putting up numbers of which most players can only dream. 4,100 yards and 37 TDs are certainly nothing to sneeze at. Even 15 INTs isn't that bad. What hurts is the time in which they came. When your goal is a Heisman Trophy and you fall flat in your biggest games of the year, that has to qualify as a disappointment. Eight of Daniel's 15 picks came in key losses on national television (Oklahoma State, Texas and Oklahoma) or to MU's arch-rival (Kansas). Through the first five weeks of the season, Daniel was putting up Sam Bradford-type numbers (15 TDs, 1 INT). But after that, he showed he was mortal--he didn't have an INT-free game the rest of the season and had just 22 TDs to go along with 10 INTs. Worse, the Tigers went just 4-4 in that stretch.

San Antonio is really nice in December, and the folks there know how to throw a party. But Daniel's sights were set much higher than the Alamo Bowl.

Dishonorable Mention: Arian Foster (RB, Tennessee), Cullen Harper (QB, Clemson)

Biggest Disappointment (Team)
Clemson

While teams like Georgia and Missouri may have had loftier goals (Heisman trophies and BCS championships) and Arizona State was expected to compete in the Pac-10, I give the nod to Clemson for failing to take advantage of a much easier path. Missouri, Georgia and Arizona State had to face the likes of USC, Oklahoma, Texas, Alabama and Florida. While the ACC has several good teams, are there any that really scare you? The ACC was ripe for the picking this year, and Clemson was predicted to finally have that breakthrough season they'd been waiting for under Tommy Bowden. But as we all know, Clemson failed to deliver and Bowden was shown the door halfway through the season.

The exit door is that way? Ah, got it.

Dishonorable Mention: Georgia, Arizona State

Worst Coach of the Year
Tyrone Willingham, Washington

There are lots of potential contenders for this coveted award. But it's impossible to argue with 0-12.

And the award for world's shortest book goes to . . .

Dishonorable Mention: Todd Dodge, North Texas; Steve Kragthorpe, Louisville

In the interest of fair play, next week I'll dust off my preseason predictions and see how well (or not) I fared in forecasting the 2008 season. Have a good weekend everyone!

Simpson Loses Voting Rights

Nevada- Traditionally, felons lose their right to vote in elections for public office. However, OJ Simpson lost a much more valuable vote today.

According to sources within prison, Mr. Simpson has been using his Heisman vote in prison as a new form of currency bypassing the traditional methods such as cigarettes, playing cards and intimate favors. OJ had promised a fellow inmate his ballot for this year's Heisman, which he was awarded for winning in 1968, in exchange for friendship.

"Yeah, he gave it up to me," said Fred "Switchblade" Reeves. "We had an agreement, but now he might need to use those fancy feet to dodge some accidents."

The AP reports that the Goldman family has won an injunction to seize the ballot because of its possible financial value. According to court files, the Goldman's site the potential of fruit baskets from Heisman candidates, coaches and schools.

The Goldman's were not available to comment before press time. A representative for the family said that they were pleased justice was done and they looked forward to reviewing Mr. Simpson's future currency proposals.

Another Heisman Trophy Up For Grabs

As the talk of who will win this year's Heisman begins to ramp up, a trophy from yesteryear will again be sold. As the LA Time's chronicles, former USC great and NFL veteran Charles White will see his Heisman trophy sold, yet again, at an upcoming auction. White got involved with drugs during his NFL career (which faded short of a decade) and had to sell his Heisman years ago to help settle tax problems. He is a divorced father of five and greatly needed the money. Since that initial selling, which fetched around 184 grand, it was sold again for nearly 300 thousand dollars.

One has to wonder what it might go for this time. As it turns out, Heisman trophy winners these days are forced to sign documents saying they will not sell their trophy. This of course makes those out there much more valuable. According to the article, White says he's not upset he has sold the trophy, and is curious what it will net this time around. With just six Heisman trophies on record as being sold - including the infamous OJ Simpson trophy - it should probably fetch some pretty good coin even in this economic downturn.

One of the interesting things about the Heisman is that might it might be the most coveted individual award. You don't see anyone kicking in doors for the Maurice Podoloff Trophy given to the NBA MVP, the NFL has too many different people giving out MVPs for anyone to know what is what, and the NHL MVP (Conn Smythe Award), which looks like something that should be given to a top botanist, doesn't seem to get all that much play, either. Perhaps these others trophies need a redesign or more hype to align them in Heisman territory. Regardless, somebody is about to open their wallet big to get one and they probably never played a down.

Fat Tony's Heisman Analysis Archive

With the always much-anticipated Heisman trophy presentation upon us this weekend, HHR turns to our own resident Mel Kiper (and old school Eye-talian), Fat Willard's father Fat Tony, who every year at Heisman-time finds a way to disagree with the voters. Below are Fat Tony's commentaries since 1990, putting down the bad selections.


1990 Ty Detmer, BYU, Quarterback

“Doesn’t he have to go on a mission to Kenya or something?”


1991 Desmond Howard, Michigan, Wide Receiver

“This guy is a glorified Mel Gray and they are giving him the Heisman? Vaughn Dunbar [No relation to CR] was robbed. Good Luck.”


1992 Gino Torretta, Miami, Quarterback

“Geno Torretta will never be a successful NFL QB. He is wearing white socks with a suit.”


1993 Charlie Ward, Florida State, Quarterback

“What is he 5’6”? He’s got a better shot being an NBA point guard.”


1994 Rashaan Salaam, Colorado, Running Back

“You're supposed to get straight A's in college, not your name you know.”


1995 Eddie George, Ohio State, Running Back

"Two first names? What's he gonna be called, Eddie? George? More like nobody."


1996 Danny Wuerffel, Florida, Quarterback

“He’s a system guy. Unless Spurrier one day decides to coach in the NFL and brings him with him, he’s out of the league in 5 years tops and that’s only because teams need practice squad players.”

"One day, son, we'll fun-and-gun our way to the Nation's Capitol."

1997 Charles Woodson, Michigan, Cornerback

“This guy’s a glorified Desmond Howard and they are giving him the Heisman? Archie’s kid got robbed. Good Luck.”


1998 Ricky Williams, Texas, Running Back

“This kid’s got his head on straight.”


1999 Ron Dayne, Wisconsin, Running Back

“Whatsamatter? Too good for Rutgers?”


2000 Chris Weinke, Florida State, Quarterback

“Weinke? In my day we beat up kids with fruity, sissy names like that.”


2001 Eric Crouch Nebraska Quarterback

“Whatever happened to Timmy Frazier. This one will end up incarcerated too.”


2002 Carson Palmer, USC, Quarterback

“USC is a running back town.”


2003 Jason White, Oklahoma, Quarterback

“Is that the AIDS kid from the 80’s? That’s some story.”


2004 Matt Leinart, USC, Quarterback

“Isn't this the pretty boy that parties with Hilton and those Laguana Island broads?"

Fat Willard: "How do you know that?"

(awkward silence)

"We're through. I only date starters."

2005 Reggie Bush, USC, Running Back

“Smallish.”

"Cardboard Box"

2006 Troy Smith, Ohio State, Quarterback

“I guess they have to give it to someone.”

Rev's Review at the Halfway Point

LSU Is Really, Really Good

So far, the preseason questions about the Tigers’ ability to replace stars from last year’s Sugar Bowl winning squad seem to have been answered. Senior QB Matt Flynn is playing as well as any QB in the country and the Tiger defense is absolutely dominating opponents. They pummeled Virginia Tech, a preseason top 10 team, 41-0. They withstood Florida’s best shot this past weekend to stay unbeaten at 6-0. They are, without a doubt, the top team in the country.

Upsets Everywhere

We’ve seen five year’s worth of major upsets packed into one season:

Appalachian State beating Michigan – The football equivalent of a 16 seed beating a 1 in the NCAA basketball tournament. Division II App. St. derailed Michigan’s national title run before it even began and opened up serious questions about Lloyd Carr’s long-term longevity in Ann Arbor. The Wolverines seem to have righted the ship since this opening game debacle, but the upset will live on as one of the greatest of all time.

Stanford beating USC – Ending the longest home winning streak in the country is something special. Doing it as a 41 point underdog is simply unheard of. This was bound to happen to USC at one point or another this season, but it’s a shock that the letdown happened against Stanford.

Syracuse beating Louisville – Syracuse is quite possibly the worst team among the BCS conferences. Yet their sole win came against Louisville, on the road, and as a 37.5 point dog. The game seriously exposed Louisville for what they are – not a good team.

Heisman Race Wide Open

This race is about as wide open as it could be at the moment. None of the players on the pre-season hype list have done a lot to distinguish themselves through the halfway point in the season. Arkansas RB Darren McFadden is probably still the guy to beat, but don’t be surprised to see other names like Cal WR DeSean Jackson or Florida QB Tim Tebow thrown into the mix.

Best Press Conference

Mike Gundy, Oklahoma State.



Gundy’s “I’m a Man!!!” rant was ridiculous enough to earn a spot in the Denny Green “Crown their Asses!” pantheon of all-time great post-game press conference blowups.

Biggest Surprise(s)

Illinois. Consecutive 2-win seasons did little to inspire faithful among the Illini faithful in Champaign. However, much maligned coach Ron Zook has finally gotten his team on track, securing the first major win of his tenure with an upset of then ranked no. 5 Wisconsin this past weekend. The Illini are 5-1, and with games against Michigan and Ohio State still looming, they could be in a position to shake up the Big Ten title race.

South Florida/Cincinnati/Connecticut. The Big East trio are all undefeated and tied for the conference lead. Preseason favorites West Virginia, Rutgers and Louisville, on the other hand, have all suffered conference losses so far.

Boston College. Also 6-0 and leading the ACC. QB Matt Ryan has been on fire as of late, and his inspired play has moved him squarely into the discussion for many of the major postseason awards lists (Heisman?).

Biggest Disappointment

Louisville. The Cards entered the season as a top-10 team and a favorite to reach a BCS bowl for the second year in a row. 6 games in, they’re struggling mightily at 3-3 with bowl eligibility looking less and less likely every week. The defense has been torched repeatedly, surrendering an average of over 40 points a game in their losses. Senior QB Brian Brohm is the lone bright spot on the team, having thrown for 2,400 yards and 20 TDs thus far. However, new Cards coach Steve Kragthorpe appears to be way in over his head with this team, and many in the normally supportive Louisville fan base are clamoring for his removal.

What to Watch For

• Can LSU stay undefeated? It’s entirely conceivable to see them lose to either Auburn, Alabama or Arkansas. Plus, a possible blood-feud rematch with Florida could happen in the SEC championship game.
• Can Cal win the Pac-10? With USC blowing the game against Stanford, the Golden Bears’ destiny is entirely in their hands.
• Will a mid-major get a shot at the BCS? Boise State proved last year that the little guys can indeed play great football at the highest level. Hawaii is the only non-BCS school in both polls at the moment, and it looks like they’ll have to stay unblemished to make it to crash the BCS party.
• Is Ohio State for real? They destroy all the teams they are supposed to beat, but it doesn’t seem as if they’ve been tested at all this season.
• Will Kentucky flame out? The Cats currently stand at 5-1, but they face a brutal closing stretch that includes games against LSU, Florida, Georgia and Tennessee.
• Where will Notre Dame end up? It’s been a sorry season thus far for the Irish, to say the least.

-posted by Rev. Shaw Moore

The Reverend Preaches College Football: Running Back Edition

The Rev. is back with part two of our college football preview. Today we’ll take a look at the running backs to watch out for this coming season:

You’re Spot Is Reserved at the Downtown Athletic Club

Darren McFadden, Arkansas

Too bad for those who don’t watch SEC football, because McFadden is simply one of the most dominating rushers college football has seen in quite some time. McFadden can absolutely punish teams between the tackles, and if he happens to get in the secondary, he is gone. In the Rev’s eyes, McFadden is in a class by himself compared to all other backs in D-1 football. All indications point to McFadden producing another stellar year for the Razorbacks – helping to keep coach Houston Nutt gainfully employed for another year.

We’re Really Really Good Too, Just Not As Good As McFadden

Steve Slaton, West Virginia

Slaton is a classic scat-back with a lot of his yards coming from off-tackle runs in West Virginia’s option offense. He’s a patient runner that strings the defense out; once he gets to the corner, he has an unusual burst of speed that allows him to cut upfield. Critics knock Slaton because of his lack of size, his propensity to injury, and the fact that a lot of his carries get disguised by misdirection and other trick-er-ation in general. However, the guy simply chews up yards and scores loads of TDs, and he is the key to WV’s success this coming year.

Mike Hart, Michigan

Hart may be another Lilliputian in pads, but he runs like an absolute wrecking ball for the Wolverines. Michigan’s zone blocking scheme up front provides many opportunities for short cut-back runs at which Hart excels. Hart makes up for his lack of track star speed with the ability to avoid tacklers and pick up tough yards after contact. He is the prototypical back that Michigan loves to wear down opposing defenses with. Hart should enjoy another productive year for the Wolverines.

Ray Rice, Rutgers

The break-out back from last year’s college football season, Rice returns to lead Rutgers in the chase for the Big East crown. Rice is a physical runner that likes to inflict more punishment than he takes. Rice can run inside or out and has just enough speed to outrun defenders if he gets to the second level. He has a great line blocking in front of him, which includes 2006 1st team All American Eric Foster. Rutgers did lose bruising fullback Brian Leonard to graduation, so that may negatively impact Rice’s ability to be as productive out of the I-formation this year.

Ian Johnson, Boise State

Everybody remembers Johnson for scoring the winning touchdown against Oklahoma in the Fiesta Bowl on the Statue of Liberty play and then proposing to his girlfriend on national TV … but lost in the mix is the fact that he ran for 24 TDs and close to 1,800 yards last year. Regardless that a lot of those yards came against B-list opponents in the regular season, rushing for that many yards over a 12-game season is quite an accomplishment. Johnson will be expected to carry much more of the load for the Broncos with the departure of QB Jared Zabransky.

Watch These Guys Run

Felix Jones, Arkansas

Jones serves as McFadden’s foil in the balanced Arkansas running attack. A first-team back for any other college team in America – he’s that good.

Branden Ore, Virginia Tech

Doesn’t do any one thing great but does a lot of things pretty well. Shifty back will move the chains for the Hokies and take pressure off QB Sean Glennon.

P.J. Hill, Wisconsin

Workhorse for the Badgers. He carried 35 times for 249 yards last year against Northwestern, 31 times for 148 yards against Penn State.

Jamaal Charles, Texas

The Longhorns success in the Big XII depends on running the football well, and Charles has the speed and power to move the chains. Dark horse lurking on some preseason awards lists.

Chris “Beanie” Wells, Ohio State
Wells played well in spot duty for the national runners-up last year. The Bucks always pound the ball, so Wells will get plenty of opportunities to shine as a full-time starter this season.

Others To Watch

Tashard Choice, Georgia Tech
Jonathan Stewart, Oregon
Joe McKnight, USC
James Davis, Clemson

-posted by the Rev. Shaw Moore