2011 College Football Offseason News

[CU Tiger]

Originally Posted by digamma

There is an additional sentence beyond the one Poli quoted:

"Players on the line of scrimmage within seven yards of the center are still allowed to block below the waist anywhere on the field."

Based on that, I actually don't think it changes the blocking schemes all that much. The biggest change will be what receivers can and can't do, but they weren't really throwing any blocks for GT last year anyway...

Understood.....but what GT and Wake do extensively is cut with a 2nd tight end or up back who is an off the line man. That is now illegal.

No more rocket man cuts either to spring Qb sweeps.....

[digamma]

Originally Posted by CU Tiger

Understood.....but what GT and Wake do extensively is cut with a 2nd tight end or up back who is an off the line man. That is now illegal.

No more rocket man cuts either to spring Qb sweeps.....

Again, I think this is semantics. The cut from an RB is still ok as long as the defender is facing the RB. So, the RB leaving the backfield and cut blocking the second level linebacker is still legal so long as it is not a crack back block.

Basically, this really is a new writing of the existing crack back blocking rules.

[Poli]

Originally Posted by BYU 14

This is correct, tackle to tackle is still considered a free block zone so this won't effect what the interior line can do. This actually gets the College rules more in line with current High School rules which are almost identical now in this area.

I actually figured this was assumed, I apologize for the omission. I just figured this would be a given.

[Poli]

Originally Posted by digamma

Again, I think this is semantics. The cut from an RB is still ok as long as the defender is facing the RB. So, the RB leaving the backfield and cut blocking the second level linebacker is still legal so long as it is not a crack back block.

Basically, this really is a new writing of the existing crack back blocking rules.

The part that will come in question is the "facing" bit.

[BYU 14]

Originally Posted by Poli

I actually figured this was assumed, I apologize for the omission. I just figured this would be a given.

You scared the triple option fans

[CU Tiger]

Originally Posted by Poli

The part that will come in question is the "facing" bit.

bingo

[JonInMiddleGA]

Originally Posted by Poli

I actually figured this was assumed, I apologize for the omission. I just figured this would be a given.

Given how screwy NFL rules can get, and given how most of the rule changes (not just these but the whole package) are described as making CFB more like the NFL, I wasn't taking anything for granted.

[Poli]

Tennessee suspends the other starting safety today pending a domestic assault charge. That's 8 up, including the return of Art Evans, and 3 down in this month alone.

[lungs]

Originally Posted by Poli

Tennessee suspends the other starting safety today pending a domestic assault charge. That's 8 up, including the return of Art Evans, and 3 down in this month alone.

Brent Brewer, right? Former Milwaukee Brewer farmhand.

Is he any better at football than he was baseball?

[Ksyrup]

Seems to be a pretty good hitter.

[Logan]

Well played sir.

[lungs]

Originally Posted by Ksyrup

Seems to be a pretty good hitter.

A skill he has picked up after his baseball career was over.

[Dr. Sak]

Originally Posted by BYU 14

This is correct, tackle to tackle is still considered a free block zone so this won't effect what the interior line can do. This actually gets the College rules more in line with current High School rules which are almost identical now in this area.

There still a difference between the high school and the proposed college rules if we are talking NCAA vs NFHS for blocking below the waist.

High School: Blocking below the waist is permitted if the block is made within the free blocking zone, however the person making the block AND the person getting blocked below the waist must both be in the zone at the snap. Also, the ball has to also be in the zone when the block below the waist occurs.

College: With this proposed rule the players in the free blocking zone can block anyone below the waist with no regard to the player being in the zone or not, or the location of the ball at the time of the block.

[Poli]

Originally Posted by lungs

Brent Brewer, right? Former Milwaukee Brewer farmhand.

Is he any better at football than he was baseball?

Yep, same guy. Came on strong last year to provide some help to the depleted secondary.

[MrBug708]

It took Rick two months to hire.....

Joe Tresey

*sigh*

[JonInMiddleGA]

Nate Montana transfers from Notre Dame to ... Montana.

Poetic.

[cschex]

Originally Posted by JonInMiddleGA

Nate Montana transfers from Notre Dame to ... Montana.

Poetic.

At least they'll save money on the printing on the jersey

[Ksyrup]

The ACC knows fuck-all about scheduling. What a horrible job they do. You'd think a conference that has been embarrassed in recent years by the lack of a true national championship contender would try not to put up roadblocks for teams to give it their best shot to go undefeated or lose 1 game, and also try to put their teams in the best possible position to do well in marquee games against other conferences.

FSU plays Oklahoma on September 17th. We then travel to Clemson the next Saturday. Ridiculous. Why would you schedule a game that could likely decide the division when one team will not be totally ready for it, coming off a game against #1 and going on the road?

Then, we have 36 days (!) before our next home game.

Later, we play NC State and then turn around and travel to BC for a Thursday night game. Why would you do that?

One of the blogs also makes a great point about the 3 ACC/SEC rivalry games (FSU/UF, GT/UGA, and USC/Clemson) and how smart the SEC is in how they schedule the week before. In the last 4 years, the ACC team has played a conference game 11 out of 12 games (the 1 non-conference game was actually a bye). The SEC team has played 2 out of 12 conference games, with 5 byes. The rest of the SEC matchups were basically cupcakes.

These people have got to get their act together.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Originally Posted by Ksyrup

FSU plays Oklahoma on September 17th. We then travel to Clemson the next Saturday. Ridiculous. Why would you schedule a game that could likely decide the division when one team will not be totally ready for it, coming off a game against #1 and going on the road?

Seems presumptuous for the conference to base their portion of the scheduling on who they think is going to be a contender.

Then, we have 36 days (!) before our next home game.

Later, we play NC State and then turn around and travel to BC for a Thursday night game. Why would you do that?

Because the conference wants as many Thursday night games for exposure as they can get. Once you're into the season, somebody is going to get that four day turnaround unless they can tell teams in advance far enough to spend an off week on it.

One of the blogs also makes a great point about the 3 ACC/SEC rivalry games (FSU/UF, GT/UGA, and USC/Clemson) and how smart the SEC is in how they schedule the week before.

Probably best to take GT out of that equation. In the last 4 years, yes, they've played a conference game the week prior to playing UGAg. But two of those games were against Duke, '07 was against a 4-8 UNC, and the other was against a Miami team that was 7-3 at the time but ended up 7-6. But the Jackets had a bye week mid-season between Clemson & Va Tech 2x, between (then) #19 UNC & #23 Miami, as well as an odd bye between Army & Va Tech. From a conference standpoint (never mind which game I'd prefer to see GT win), what they've had was better.

I don't think the scheduling is optimal, but I don't think it's all that horrible either. {shrug}

[Logan]

Originally Posted by JonInMiddleGA

Because the conference wants as many Thursday night games for exposure as they can get.

I remember the days when the Big East was laughed at for playing football on Thursday nights.

[Ksyrup]

I'm not saying play favorites. I'm saying the schedule should make sense. Although I think that without a doubt, the SEC plays it smart in both respects.

Also, I don't have a problem with Thursday games, it's the idea of forcing one or both teams to play that game immediately after a Saturday game.that is the problem.

[Dr. Sak]

Originally Posted by Logan

I remember the days when the Big East was laughed at for playing football on Thursday nights.

Now the Big East plays on Friday's where it belongs...same as High School football.

[gstelmack]

Originally Posted by Ksyrup

Also, I don't have a problem with Thursday games, it's the idea of forcing one or both teams to play that game immediately after a Saturday game.that is the problem.

My problem with Thursday games is that the kids have to miss school for traveling. Isn't time away from school the key alleged reason we can't have a playoff?

[Ksyrup]

The reason FSU rarely plays Thursday home games (I think they've played one) is that they would essentially have to cancel classes on the entire campus for the afternoon to deal with the traffic.

[digamma]

Originally Posted by JonInMiddleGA

Because the conference wants as many Thursday night games for exposure as they can get. Once you're into the season, somebody is going to get that four day turnaround unless they can tell teams in advance far enough to spend an off week on it.

I think teams have to agree to a 4 day turn around week and both teams playing in the game must have the same rest (if one team is playing on 4 days rest, the other must be doing so too).

The nonconference schedules this year kind of forced the ACC's hand. FSU is a good example. With 3 nonconference games up front and one at the end, the ACC only had 9 consecutive weeks to schedule 8 games. There's only so much you can do with that.

[digamma]

Incidentally, I read an article that the reason why the ACC schedule was delayed an extra week was because they were trying to arrange FSU-Miami to be on Labor Day weekend again, but FSU was not able to move the Louisiana-Monroe game.

[Ksyrup]

FSU didn't want to play that game. They would have had to move 2 games to play Miami on Labor Day, from what I read, because they were dead-set against playing 3 games in 12 days, with the 3rd game being Oklahoma.

So instead, we get Maryland/UM.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Originally Posted by digamma

The nonconference schedules this year kind of forced the ACC's hand. FSU is a good example. With 3 nonconference games up front and one at the end, the ACC only had 9 consecutive weeks to schedule 8 games. There's only so much you can do with that.

That's what I was getting at, or trying to at least, probably should have gone with simple sentences instead of trying to illustrate what I was thinking.

The conference schedule only has so many options once you consider everyone's non-conference preferences & obligations.

[Ksyrup]

I don't know, other conferences seem to manage it just fine and at least work to put their teams in the best position to succeed.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Originally Posted by Ksyrup

and at least work to put their teams in the best position to succeed.

Tell it to Tennessee ...
2010 - @ LSU + @ UGA back to back (traditionally that's tough)
2009 - Auburn + UGA back to back
2008 - Florida + Auburn back to back

It comes back to them most years with November schedules that are a joke, but that's not exactly optimal scheduling to have your season wrecked in the first 6 weeks of the year.

Heck, look at Alabama
2010 - 3 top 25's in a row with Arkansas, Florida, and South Carolina
2009 - 3 in a row with #20 Ole Miss, at #22 South Carolina, then UT rivalry
2006 - at LSU followed by Auburn rivalry
2005 - same at 2006

The difference seems to be that those brutal stretches come earlier in the year for some of the SEC teams, but then again GT usually has that the same way (i.e. Va Tech & Clemson feel handcuffed together)

[digamma]

The SEC also has a lot of traditional scheduling so teams are able to adjust their non-conference schedules around those.

Just to name a few...
Alabama-Tennessee 3rd Saturday in October
Cocktail Party around Halloween
Auburn-Georgia 2nd weekend in November
Auburn-Alabama Thanksgiving weekend

The ACC could go for that approach, but it takes years to implement.

[Noop]

I really hate the ACC. They have no interest in getting with the program of big time college athletics. Florida State should either seek to be independent or join up with SEC or the BIG 12(Big 9 or whatever) because the ACC has consistently shown they have no respect for Florida State. Please see the soccer fiasco for proof of their blatant disrespect.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Originally Posted by Noop

Please see the soccer fiasco for proof of their blatant disrespect.

The "fiasco" there was entirely of FSU's making. They got off light afaic, they should have been banned from conference play for at least a year after that little stunt.

For those who aren't familiar, FSU's women's soccer team tanked the conference tournament by leaving his entire starting lineup at home for the conference tournament, in order to rest them for the upcoming NCAA tourney ... Happily, they were shellacked by Stanford in the Elite Eight.

The sooner FSU is not a part of the ACC, the happier I'd be.

[Ksyrup]

Originally Posted by JonInMiddleGA

The sooner FSU is not a part of the ACC, the happier I'd be.

I bet!

[Matthean]

Originally Posted by JonInMiddleGA

Heck, look at Alabama
2010 - 3 top 25's in a row with Arkansas, Florida, and South Carolina

With 6 straight teams having a bye week before playing 'Bama. 'Bama only got one bye week in there.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Originally Posted by Ksyrup

I bet!

Well, I hate to give up the wins on the football schedule (2 in a row & 2-2 in the last four ... that's the same record we've got over that time against NC State & Virginia).

Men's basketball really doesn't matter much who they play they can find a way to lose as long as Useless is on the bench, and the baseball team can fold in the post-season to anyone just as well as they can to FSU, it's not as though the 'Noles are the big stumbling block on the diamond or anything.

What's left to worry about, women's basketball? You've got us there at the moment, but the program is improving & neither of us are likely to challenge UNC or Duke for dominance for a while anyway.

[Butter]

Originally Posted by Ksyrup

The ACC knows fuck-all about scheduling. What a horrible job they do. You'd think a conference that has been embarrassed in recent years by the lack of a true national championship contender would try not to put up roadblocks for teams to give it their best shot to go undefeated or lose 1 game, and also try to put their teams in the best possible position to do well in marquee games against other conferences.

What do you think this is, 1991? FSU is far from an assumed national title contender.

[digamma]

Originally Posted by Noop

I really hate the ACC. They have no interest in getting with the program of big time college athletics. Florida State should either seek to be independent or join up with SEC or the BIG 12(Big 9 or whatever) because the ACC has consistently shown they have no respect for Florida State. Please see the soccer fiasco for proof of their blatant disrespect.

Well the ACC power is still centered around the research triangle and everyone knows John Swofford is a little girl, but good luck with branching out to a new conference.

[Ksyrup]

Originally Posted by Butter_of_69

What do you think this is, 1991? FSU is far from an assumed national title contender.

I wasn't referring solely to FSU, since the ACC could use any contender at the moment. These issues have been ongoing and have affected a bunch of schools over the years. But yeah, of course I care more about how they affect the team I root for.

[Ksyrup]

Originally Posted by JonInMiddleGA

Well, I hate to give up the wins on the football schedule (2 in a row & 2-2 in the last four ... that's the same record we've got over that time against NC State & Virginia).

Men's basketball really doesn't matter much who they play they can find a way to lose as long as Useless is on the bench, and the baseball team can fold in the post-season to anyone just as well as they can to FSU, it's not as though the 'Noles are the big stumbling block on the diamond or anything.

What's left to worry about, women's basketball? You've got us there at the moment, but the program is improving & neither of us are likely to challenge UNC or Duke for dominance for a while anyway.

Well, I was being sarcastic in that I would think the last thing the ACC would want would be its top TV audience-drawing football program to leave. We're ranked 2nd in bowl ratings over the past 12 years according to the Wall Street Journal. I would assume TV draw and TV contract money go hand in hand, and thus, it wouldn't be a good thing for the ACC if FSU left - particularly since 4 of the bottom 5 worst-drawing teams also happen to be in the ACC.

[bbgunn]

Oak trees poisoned at Auburn

This is why I'm sometimes embarrassed to be from Alabama and a Crimson Tide alum. It's just football, guys! And I know I'm in the 1% of Alabamians who can think rationally about football, but this is ridiculous.

[CU Tiger]

Originally Posted by Ksyrup

FSU plays Oklahoma on September 17th. We then travel to Clemson the next Saturday. Ridiculous. Why would you schedule a game that could likely decide the division when one team will not be totally ready for it, coming off a game against #1 and going on the road?

Hah...think thats bad...

9/17 Auburn
9/24 FSU
10/1 AT VT

Thats 3 10 win teams from last year in a row to start the season. And we get the SEC (and National) Champ and both members of the ACC championship game in back-to-back-to-back weeks.

Also Clemson will not play Thursday night home games bcause we refuse to cancel classes to do so....and all Student parking lots have top be emptied on home game week ends to accommodate donor parking. I used to hate that when I went there, home game Saturday you either had to be one of the first to the local BiLo and park there for the day or drive an additional 7 miles outside of town and park in the garage and get a ride back to campus...unless you had friends in off campus apartments of course, but all on campus parking is closed.

[Ksyrup]

Yeah, same at FSU. We did one I recall back when I lived there, and the entire city essentially shut down at noon to get people out of town and fans going to the game into town.

[Noop]

Jon if Florida State leaves the ACC you can bet they won't be the only ones to jump ship to another conference. As for soccergate they shouldn't have been punished for that because they had their eyes set on winning the bigger prize. The ACC is completely shortsighted and so out of touch that it disgusts me. This year's football schedule (not only FSU but Clemson and a few others) is not conducive to putting out premier football programs.

The new ESPN contract will be redone the moment Florida State decides to jump ship because like it or not Florida State is the top draw in the ACC.

As for that Georgia Tech nonsense you posted lets seem them beat us going forward. The amount of dysfunction Bowden has during the tail end of his career was truly baffling and many teams (GT) capitalized off that dysfunction. I would love to see it happen again because it won't... now go watch women's basketball.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Originally Posted by Noop

I would love to see it happen again because it won't...

Trust me, that dysfunction isn't going away as long as you've stopped paying players. 2-2 over the next four is well within the realm of possibility, if for nothing else than the karmic meltdown the handling of the Bowden situation earned for FSU.

[Radii]

Originally Posted by Noop

As for soccergate they shouldn't have been punished for that because they had their eyes set on winning the bigger prize.

Has there been a discussion on this anywhere? From what I'm reading FSU had 7 of its 11 starters not even travel to the ACC Tournament site. You're saying that the ACC disrespected FSU by punishing them for this? Surely a lot of people would argue its the other way around.

[Ksyrup]

That's quite a few seasons out. I think we play a home-and-home in 2013 and 14, but after that I don't know when we play GT again.

Personally, I don't think FSU is going to be as good in 2011 as the hype right now has them, and the schedule is absolutely not going to do them any favors. Which goes back to my point about the ACC not helping its teams become contenders. Like it or not, FSU is a clear top 12 team on nearly everyone's (obviously early) pre-season rankings right now. Some have them in the top 5. I think that's ridiculous. But a pre-season top 12 ranking and a win over Oklahoma in week 3 and they are, at that moment, a legit national title contender without a doubt. That's what the rankings will say.

[digamma]

Originally Posted by Noop

Jon if Florida State leaves the ACC you can bet they won't be the only ones to jump ship to another conference. As for soccergate they shouldn't have been punished for that because they had their eyes set on winning the bigger prize. The ACC is completely shortsighted and so out of touch that it disgusts me. This year's football schedule (not only FSU but Clemson and a few others) is not conducive to putting out premier football programs.

The new ESPN contract will be redone the moment Florida State decides to jump ship because like it or not Florida State is the top draw in the ACC.

As for that Georgia Tech nonsense you posted lets seem them beat us going forward. The amount of dysfunction Bowden has during the tail end of his career was truly baffling and many teams (GT) capitalized off that dysfunction. I would love to see it happen again because it won't... now go watch women's basketball.

Noop,

Georgia Tech is FSU's best friend in the ACC. Clemson tries to be but they are still tied into the ACC old school a bit. But if you look back at pretty much every big change in the ACC in the last decade or so, it has been Georgia Tech and FSU leading the outsider's charge.

And FSU isn't going anywhere. The ACC deal is good for them and has buttered their bread for a while. The SEC doesn't want them because they don't add anything (Florida already brings their market), the Big Ten has the whole research university thing and the Texas conference would just be a bad deal all around.

[digamma]

Originally Posted by Ksyrup

That's quite a few seasons out. I think we play a home-and-home in 2013 and 14, but after that I don't know when we play GT again.

Personally, I don't think FSU is going to be as good in 2011 as the hype right now has them, and the schedule is absolutely not going to do them any favors. Which goes back to my point about the ACC not helping its teams become contenders. Like it or not, FSU is a clear top 12 team on nearly everyone's (obviously early) pre-season rankings right now. Some have them in the top 5. I think that's ridiculous. But a pre-season top 12 ranking and a win over Oklahoma in week 3 and they are, at that moment, a legit national title contender without a doubt. That's what the rankings will say.

Your opening game in the ACC is with a team that went 6-7 last year and is replacing its starting QB and starting RB, not to mention a top 5 draft pick on the D line. That should be a walk for a "contender."

[Ksyrup]

I don't know if it speaks to the talent that Clemson has under-utilized, the crapfest that is the ACC, or a little of both, but FSU and Clemson are widely considered to be the division's top 2 teams next year. I gues you can throw NC St in there, but I think the consensus is the other 2 first.

And hey, like I said, I'm not sure I buy them as contenders next year, but their ranking will determine that. I see a 3 loss season, probably. With Manuel a senior and two full years under Jimbo, I think 2012 should be a legit year.