The BLITZ

What will happen at UCLA? Who is Georgia Tech looking at as their next head coach? How does Lloyd Carr stack up against his coaching peers? Will three Florida losses hurt Tim Tebow with the Heisman? Who will finish No. 1 in recruiting? Who can make an impact as freshmen next year in '08? I answer these questions and more in this week's BLITZ.

The Blitz (click here to submit question)

Many people have said Coach Karl Dorrell is on the hot seat after five mediocre seasons. We don't hear much nationally about it. What is the buzz and who are the perspective replacement candidates?
Jeff
La Verne, California
Without question Coach Dorrell is on the hot seat as UCLA has struggled this season. Yes they beat Oregon last weekend and have a chance to win the Pac 10 with a victory over USC this weekend. But the Bruins are a disappointing 6-5 and it looks like they will make their change at the top.

The big question is who would replace Dorrell? Right now I think there are several names at the forefront like Chris Peterson (Boise State), Mike Leach (Texas Tech), Steve Mariucci and Mark Mangino (Kansas). You also need to add current UCLA defensive coordinator DeWayne Walker to the candidate list. Tennessee Titan offensive coordinator Norm Chow is a name of late that is gaining a lot of steam.

I think there has to be a lot of merit given to Walker, who is also a tremendous recruiter. Peterson is still the hot name while Mariucci is the most intriguing. Several high powered money people would love to see him on the sidelines in Westwood. But perhaps the most intriguing is Chow, who has never been a head coach. Is this his chance? How about pairing him with current Bruin defensive coordinator DeWayne Walker?

If the Bruins do make a move they will certainly have a nice coaching pool to choose from.

Lloyd Carr
Thank goodness Carr finally stepped down at Michigan. Now we can hire a coach that can beat Ohio State and win a bowl game. Who will it be?
Will
Detroit, Michigan
Easy Will. As I have stated to college football fans, be careful what you wish for. In regards to Michigan, take a quick glance at the coaching list below. Those are your most active winning coaches (minimum of four years) based on winning percentage. Do you see who is sitting at No. 7? Yes, it’s Lloyd Carr. Sure he has struggled of late against your arch-rival Buckeyes but the guy is the 7th winningest coach in NCAA 1-A football and you want him out? He won a National Championship and five Big 10 titles (by the way, nine of the ten coaches listed below have all won national titles with Mark Richt being the one that has not).

1) Pete Carroll, USC 74-14 (.841)
2) Urban Meyer, Florida 70-15 (.824)
3) Bob Stoops, Oklahoma 96-21 (.821)
4) Mark Richt, Georgia 71-19 (.789)
5) Philip Fulmer, Tennessee 146-44 (.768)
6) Bobby Bowden, FSU 373-118-4 (.758)
7) Lloyd Carr, Michigan 121-40 (.752)
8) Joe Paterno, Penn State 371-125-3 (.746)
9) Steve Spurrier, S. Carolina 163-56-2 (.742)
10) Jim Tressel, Ohio State 208-72-2 (.741)

Now that it is done and Carr is stepping down, who will be the new Michigan coach? I think everyone is looking in Baton Rouge at Tiger Head Coach Les Miles. But is he their No. 1 guy? Or is it Bob Stoops (Oklahoma), Kirk Ferentz (Iowa), Ron English, Mike DeBord, Brian Kelly (Cincinnati), Mike Trgovac (Carolina Panters D.C.) or someone else. I honestly don’t believe Miles is the top choice but given the fact that he is a Michigan man to the core I think he will be the guy that answers the bell in the end. Of course, I think it helps that he is no longer playing for a national championship at LSU.

Chan Gailey
What are you hearing in regards to Georgia Tech? Who will be their next coach?
Bill
Smyrna, Georgia
What is wrong with this picture? Chan Gailey went 44-32 while the Yellow Jacket Head Coach. He went to a bowl game every year while at Georgia Tech. Yet he was fired on Monday. Attention Georgia Tech; be careful what you wish for.

I get it. Gailey struck out against the Georgia and never beat the Bulldogs.

The stakes are higher. Heck, the stakes get higher and higher each and every season. Nebraska fans thought the same thing with Frank Solich after he went 10-3 in his final season at Lincoln. Like I said, be careful what you wish for.

Now to the matters at hand, who will be Gailey’s replacement? It’s early and hard to say. But I think the pool of candidates includes Jimbo Fisher (FSU offensive coordinator), Will Muschamp (Auburn defensive coordinator), Charlie Strong (Florida defensive coordinator), Skip Holtz (ECU), Randy Edsall (UConn), Rick Neuheisel, Chris Hatcher (Georgia Southern) and John Tenuta (Georgia Tech defensive coordinator).

Athletic Director Dan Radakovich spent time at LSU and South Carolina prior to taking over the Yellow Jacket program. It wouldn’t surprise me to see his choice be someone that he has had a working relationship with at one of his past posts. So those ties would be with Fisher, Muschamp, Strong and Holtz. Edsall has ties to the program with the time he spent there under George O’Leary. Neuheisel would love a shot to head south and take over the program while Radakovich will give Tenuta a strong look. There is some thought he could decide to go for offense and look strongly at a guy like Hatcher, who is one of the brightest young minds in the game.

It’s an interesting pool of coaches. I wouldn’t be surprised if he picks an offensive guy and tried to pair him with Tenuta, hoping he will stay in Atlanta and coach the Yellow Jackets defense.

Tim Tebow
Why do people keep talking about Florida’s three losses effecting Tebow’s Heisman chances? Also, that he is a sophomore? Aren’t the Heisman's ONLY credentials "who is the BEST college football player”?
Steve
Florida
I think if anything were to hurt Tim Tebow’s chances with winning the Heisman Trophy it would be because he is only a sophomore. Sure Florida has three losses but Tebow actual played quite well in those defeats, particularly against LSU, while his tender shoulder limited his running ability against the Dawgs.

At this time I think Tebow, Darren McFadden (Arkansas) and Chase Daniel (Missouri) are the top three candidates. McFadden’s Hogs have lost four games while Daniel’s Tigers have only lost one. But Missouri takes on Oklahoma for the Big 12 Championship this weekend. I really believe that if Daniel plays well and Missouri beats OU then this could be a very close Heisman race to the very end. Let’s look at the numbers.

Tebow is the game’s first player to throw for 20+ touchdowns passes and run for 20+ touchdowns. He has accounted for 51 touchdowns overall, thrown for 3,162 yards (only six picks), he has completed 68% of his passes and rushed for 838 yards. Meanwhile, he is second in the NCAA in pass efficiency. McFadden has rushed for 1,765 yards, 15 touchdowns and has averaged 5.7 yards per carry. Remember, he lines up at quarterback in the “wild hog” formation and shares time at running back with Felix Jones. Daniel is a guy that has performed well all season but flew under the radar until the last half of the year. He has thrown for just under 4,000 yards, completed 71% of his passes, and thrown for 33 touchdowns (nine interceptions). All three players performed brilliantly last weekend. For Tebow and McFadden, their regular seasons are over. Daniel gets one more shot in his conference title tilt on Saturday. I think he trails Tebow and McFadden right now but with a win and a great performance, who knows?

I think Tebow is the leader today and he has a great chance to become the first ever sophomore to win the Heisman Trophy. I don’t think the three Gator losses will hurt him unless Daniel has a monster game and Mizzou wins the Big 12. Then, all bets are off.

Colt Brennan
I just wanted to congratulate Hawaii on their first win of the season. Good job guys!
Mark
Mississippi
Easy there Mark, as you are referring to last week’s win over Boise State. Perhaps Hawaii doesn’t have a strong schedule but do you know what? They have won them all. No one else can say that this season. It’s very difficult to do no matter what conference you play in.

Hawaii is sitting at 11-0 and they finish up this season at home against Washington. Hawaii has gone through the WAC and beaten everyone, including Boise State.

I realize their schedule isn’t packed with any strong non-conference games. Much of that can be explained because no one wants to schedule Hawaii, fearing that June Jones offense and getting upset. I know in speaking with many coaches that have played Hawaii in the past they say how good and tough this football team is. They have lost a little defensively this season with the departure of defensive coordinator Jerry Glanville, as he became the Head Coach at Portland State. But this is a team that causes everyone fits and is very tough to prepare for.

If they do get by Washington on Saturday, Hawaii will crash the BCS party. They could find themselves in the Sugar Bowl against LSU. Then we will find out real quickly how legit this program is. I believe it is better than what most people think.

Charlie Weis
Who do you think will end up having the number one recruiting class? And what big time players should we watch out for as freshman coming in?
Nick
Atlanta, Georgia
Notre Dame has gone wire to wire thus far as the Scout.com No. 1 ranked team in recruiting. One would think they could possibly lose some prospects because of their 3-9 season. That has not happened yet nor do I think it will. Perhaps they could lose a prospect or two, but usually that happens to everyone. That’s recruiting.

Who can catch the Irish? Georgia? I don’t think so because the Dawgs have only one more scholarship to give. Maybe another or two with attrition but it’s hard to say. Regardless Mark Richt is bringing in an outstanding group.

FSU? I don’t think the Seminoles will close with enough juice to catch Notre Dame.

UCLA? If anything, the Bruins will drop in the rankings because of a (potential) coaching change. Committed prospects could end up elsewhere. But it may not be as bad as people think, depending on who comes in.

USC? You betcha. I think the Trojans will close with a flurry and could possibly catch the Fighting Irish and take claim to the top recruiting class in the country once again. They are on an array of big time prospects and USC will land their share. With 25 scholarships, they will be tough to beat.

In regards to the other part of your question it’s hard to say at this point without combing through all the recruiting classes and cross referencing that with depth charts and team needs. Looking at the Scout.com National 100 I do believe A.J. Green (Summerville, S.C.) could make an instant impact in Athens. I also believe Julio Jones (Foley, Ala.) will make a big splash no matter who he signs with. Safeties Will Hill (Jersey City, N.J.) and Dee Finley (Auburn, Ala.) will likely see significant time in the Gator secondary in ’08. I believe all the USC offensive tackle commits will have a chance to contribute for the Trojans (Matt Khalil, Matt Meyer and Tyron Smith). Defensive lineman Ethan Johnson (Portland, Ore.) should make a big difference for the Notre Dame defense next year, as will a few of his future teammates from this class like Omar Hunter (Buford, Ga.). Other potential impact players are Aldarius Johnson (Miami), Aaron Williams (Texas), Brendan Beal (Florida), DeVier Posey (Ohio State), Dan Buckner (Texas), and Brandon Barnes (N.C. State).

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