It might be hard to believe, but the college football offseason has finally arrived. After months of watching practices and previewing the upcoming season, the race for the BCS is about to begin.
Thursday kicks off the regular season and 28 teams (both Football Bowl Subdivision and Football Championship Subdivision) will take to the gridiron. The headliners on Thursday are N.C. State-South Carolina, Wake Forest-Baylor and Oregon State-Stanford.
It almost seems like an eternity since we introduced the new College Fantasy Football product using individual players, and now we get to see it in action.
Every week during the Fantasy season we will produce a Planner outlining some key points from the upcoming week, such as interesting tidbits for Fantasy owners, important injury notes and abbreviated Start 'em/Sit 'em highlighting intriguing matchups.
We do all this to help you in attaining your ultimate goal -- Fantasy glory.
Quarterback Carousel
It's absolutely ridiculous to see the Big 12 conference littered with potential Heisman quarterbacks. They have Chase Daniel at Missouri, Texas Tech's Graham Harrell, Sam Bradford at Oklahoma, Todd Reesing at Kanasa, Texas' Colt McCoy, Oklahoma State's Zac Robinson and Kansas State's Josh Freeman. Also, guys like Joe Ganz at Nebraska, Texas A&M's Stephen McGee and Colorado's Cody Hawkins are just knocking at the door.
While the Big 12 didn't have many quarterback controversies this offseason, the rest of the country had plenty.
Oregon had the tall task of replacing last year's Heisman candidate, Dennis Dixon. It appeared as though Nate Costa, coming off a serious knee injury, would be the guy coach Mike Bellotti ended up starting. But Costa had a setback recently that is expected to sideline him 8-10 weeks and Justin Roper is in line to start Saturday's opener with Washington.
In a very surprising move, first-year SMU head coach June Jones passed over incumbent QB Justin Willis and has opted to let two true freshmen run the offense -- Bo Levi Mitchell and Braden Smith. Willis is a gifted dual-threat quarterback, but Jones' offense calls for a guy willing to fire off quick passes and not make plays with his legs.
Nevada head coach Chris Ault made the right move in choosing sophomore QB Colin Kaepernick as his starter. Speaking of developing dual-threat quarterbacks, this kid ranks near the top of that list. He had to play as a freshman in 2007 when Nick Graziano went down with injury and thrived under center. Graziano is still not 100 percent and Kaepernick is hoping for a big sophomore season.
Finally, Cal head coach Jeff Tedford gave the starting nod to Kevin Riley over Nate Longshore for the team's opener against Michigan State. Longshore, coming off injury, has battled inconsistency issues, while Riley has thrived in both the spring and summer camps. Both will play Saturday, but it's now Riley's job to lose.
Infirmary Report
Southern Cal QB Mark Sanchez appears recovered from a dislocated kneecap and there is a good chance he will start Saturday against Virginia ... Washington QB Jake Locker missed 11 days of practice earlier in camp because of a hamstring strain, but he has been practicing for close to a week and is expected to be 100 percent Saturday against Oregon ... Florida WR Percy Harvin, recovering from offseason heel surgery, finally practiced for the first time during fall camp last Saturday. He is still not 100 percent and head coach Urban Meyer said he might only use the potential Heisman candidate sparingly, if at all, against Hawaii on Saturday ... Purdue received some bad news recently when RB Jaycen Taylor tore a knee ligament and will miss the 2008 season following surgery. Kory Sheets will likely see the majority of carries ... Louisville WR Scott Long broke a bone in his foot and will be sidelined indefinitely. The Cardinals have no timetable for his return and have not decided if the junior wideout will have surgery. Long was expected to be a top target for QB Hunter Cantwell ... N.C. State RB Toney Baker had a setback in his recovery from season-ending knee surgery last season as he underwent the knife again in mid-July to "clear some things out." He is out indefinitely. On a bright note for the Wolfpack, TE Anthony Hill hasn't suffered any setbacks in his recovery from knee surgery and should take the field as N.C. State's starter Thursday against South Carolina ... Tennessee RB Arian Foster is not yet 100 percent healthy after sustaining a knee bruise in mid-July, but the All-SEC performer is participating in team's scrimmages and is expected to play Monday against UCLA ... Texas A&M touchdown machine Jorvorskie Lane is questionable for Saturday's season opener against Arkansas State due to lingering effects from a neck injury. He has not practiced since Aug. 13 because of a neck stinger.
Fantasy Penalty
An important note to remember in College Fantasy Football: Players are assessed a 25 percent penalty when a FBS team plays a FCS team (formerly Division I-AA). Therefore, if you own a player on a team listed below, you will only get 75 percent of their Fantasy points for the upcoming week:
Air Force, Arkansas, Arizona State, Ball State, Boise State, BYU, Central Michigan Cincinnati, Connecticut, Duke, Eastern Michigan, Georgia, Georgia Tech, Houston, Iowa, Iowa State, LSU, Marshall, Maryland, Miami (Fla.), Navy, Nevada, North Carolina Oklahoma, Ohio State, Penn State, San Diego State, San Jose State, South Florida, Texas Tech, UCF, West Virginia
Five Players to Start
Justin Anderson, RB, Northern Illinois: The Huskies open their 2008 season against Minnesota -- a team that went 1-11 in 2007 and struggled to stop pretty much everyone. The Golden Gophers ranked last in total defense (518.67 ypg) and 114th in rushing defense (229.33 ypg). They did hire former Duke head coach Ted Roof to turn around the defense, but one game might not be enough. Anderson had a breakout season in '07 as he rushed for 1,245 yards and 11 touchdowns (eight rushing). He also had 263 receiving yards. He will lose some carries to Montell Clanton and Me'co Brown, but Anderson is still the featured back and just as good as former NIU standout Garrett Wolfe.
Sammie Stroughter, WR, Oregon State: The college football world is eagerly awaiting the return of Stroughter, who missed the 2007 season due to personal and medical reasons, and it will be a warm reception when he takes the field Thursday against Stanford. The news out of Corvallis is that Stroughter is leaner, meaner and quicker than when he accounted for 1,613 receiving yards and seven touchdowns in 2006. Oregon State QB Lyle Moevao has also improved under center and the Cardinal can't afford to sleep on the 6-0 wideout, especially after they ranked 107th against the pass (266.17 ypg) in '07.
DeAndre Brown, WR, Southern Miss: All the Southern Miss coaching staff has raved about in summer camp has been the play of their standout 6-6, true freshman wide receiver. Everyone under the sun was shocked when first-year head coach Larry Fedora was able to sign the Mississippi prep standout. Fedora already said Brown will play in Saturday's opener against La.-Lafayette as he debuts his spread offense. Southern Miss still hasn't decided whether Austin Davis or Martevious Young will start under center, but whoever does will have a nice target in Brown against La.-Lafayette, who ranked 104th (446.67 ypg) in total defense and 106th in scoring defense (35.83 ppg) last season.
Kory Sperry, TE, Colorado State: Sperry had a shortened season in '07 thanks to a knee injury. Sperry was injured in Game 2 against California and opted to take a medical redshirt. But before he went on the injured list, Sperry caught three touchdowns and totaled 103 yards in the opener against Colorado. The Buffs are on the schedule again to open '08 and the 6-6 Sperry will be a nice target for first-year starter Billy Farris.
Gary Rogers, QB, Washington State: First-year head coach Paul Wulff has chosen Rogers to be the first quarterback during his tenure at WSU and replace the graduated Alex Brink, who threw for 3,792 yards and 26 touchdowns last season. Wulff replaced Bill Doba as head coach, but there might not be a fall off in passing production as Wulff also utilizes a spread offense. Rogers has some experience on the Division I level and will put it to good use in the opener against Oklahoma State. The Cowboys ranked 112th in pass defense (287.23 ypg) last season, but were also a top-ranked offense. We could see a shootout and big numbers Saturday.
Five Players to Bench
Rodney Ferguson, RB, New Mexico: The senior running back is coming off two straight 1,000-yard seasons and is considered one of the top Fantasy running backs heading into 2008. However, his season could get off to a bumpy start. The Lobos, who lost four starting offensive lineman, open with TCU, a team that ranked top 15 nationally in scoring defense, run defense, pass defense efficiency, sacks and total defense last year. The Horned Frogs return six starters from that group, including linebackers Jason Phillips and Robert Henson. Also, safety Stephen Hodge is waiting in the secondary and it could be hard for Ferguson, who had just 28 rushing yards against TCU last season, to break off a big run.
Trevor Vittaoe, QB, UTEP: It would seem on paper that Vittaoe has a layup Week 1 against Buffalo, but it might not be as easy as you think. Buffalo only finished 65th in pass defense last season and return three of their top defensive backs -- Davonte Shannon, Mike Newton and Domonic Cook. Vittaoe does have top receiver Jeff Moturi, who had 13 touchdowns in '07, back in the fold, but lost a lot of key wide receivers as well. If Buffalo can shutdown Moturi with Shannon, who had three interceptions last season, or Newton, who had four picks, then Vittaoe could have a long day.
Freddie Barnes, WR, Bowling Green: The Falcons don't exactly have an easy opener with Pitt on the schedule. The Panthers were a top five defense in '07 and ranked third in pass defense (167.25 ypg). Two starters, including Aaron Berry, and eight letterwinners return in the Pitt secondary. Berry is one of the top corners in the Big East and will likely be draped on Barnes all afternoon. Barnes was a favorite target of QB Tyler Sheehan last season as he caught 82 passes, but is going to have trouble getting open Saturday.
Eugene Jarvis, RB, Kent State: Jarvis was one of the nation's top running backs in '07 as he totaled 1,669 yards and 10 rushing touchdowns. He also added 306 yards through the air. He will have to fight for every inch Saturday against Boston College, who finished second in run defense (75.5 ypg) last season. The Eagles return four players in their front seven, but getting LB Brian Toal back from injury is like adding a fifth starter. You are not going to bench Jarvis much in '08, but it might be a good option to sit him Week 1.
Julio Jones, WR, Alabama: While DeAndre Brown has been the talk of Southern Miss' camp, Jones has been the toast of Alabama's. The 6-4, 210-pound freshman wideout was one of the top-rated players in the latest recruiting class. He is already penciled in as Bama's top receiver and will get his first taste of college football Saturday against Clemson. Not exactly a team you want to have butterflies against. The Tigers ranked 13th in pass defense (188.5 ypg) last season and return all four starters in the secondary -- Michael Hamlin, Chris Chancellor, Chris Clemons and Crezdon Butler. Jones is definitely a Fantasy receiver to watch, but the odds of him breaking out in Week 1 are steep.
