In the current BCS (conferences) set up, three of the six conferences have a dozen teams and a championship game – SEC, Big 12, and ACC. That leaves the Pac 10, Big 10 and Big East without a championship game.

First things first, each one of these leagues would have to expand to the required 12 teams. The Big 10, Pac 10 and Big East all have their reasons as to why they are not there yet.

Currently, the Big 10 is really the Big 11. They have been courting Notre Dame for some time but the Irish have been steadfast and have said no to their overtures. Notre Dame has that nice contract with NBC for football and at this time they really don’t want to share any of their football pie. But the Big 10 will not wait forever and the Fighting Irish can’t afford many poor seasons like this year. If the Big 10 decides to go in another direction they would love to pursue a team like Syracuse or Missouri. Why? It’s all about the market(s) and exposure for the conference. If the Orangemen defected from the Big East that would open up New York to the Big 10. If the Tigers came aboard it give them St. Louis, a rather big market in the Midwest. Either way, it’s about exposure and the Big 10 would get a lot of it with either team. Nothing compares to the following of a team like Notre Dame but the Big 10 will only hold out for so long.

The Pac 10 and Big East are another story. The feeling is that when the Big 10 does (eventually) make their move and add Notre Dame, Syracuse, Missouri or someone else, it will force the hand of the Pac 10 and Big East to expand. Right now the Pac 10 likes how things are. They don’t necessarily believe that this kind of change is good for their league. The Pac 10 is old school and traditionalists in terms of football. They want to play in their nine league games with the conference champion going to the Rose Bowl.

Maybe two years ago the Big East would have been in favor of expanding, especially after losing Miami, Boston College and Virginia Tech to the ACC. Then, all of a sudden, the conference showed significant improvement with West Virginia, Louisville, Rutgers, South Florida, Cincinnati, UConn, etc. The Big East, at least in terms of basketball, is incredible. So any kind of expansion with such teams like Central Florida, Memphis, etc. would have to factor in both sports into the equation.

There is no question whatsoever that the teams in the SEC, ACC and Big 12 have a tougher road because of the way things are set up respectively in their leagues with the added championship game. You play a really tough conference schedule and then have to play another top five, top 10, or top 20 type team to win your conference championship. That’s tough.

Now there are some advantages of playing in this game. First, you get to practice another week, which certainly helps the younger players. Second, you are playing another quality opponent before you play in your bowl game. Third, its great exposure for you program and should help with recruiting.

SEC Commissioner Mike Slive Look at this season’s division winners in the SEC, Big 12 and ACC. Right now you would have LSU play Georgia, Tennessee or Florida in the SEC Championship game. The winner of Kansas/Missouri will get Oklahoma for the Big 12 title. The ACC still has four teams alive and their conference title game will likely come down to the winner of Boston College/Clemson versus the winner of Virginia/Virginia Tech.

Now don’t you think things would be tough for Oregon if they had to take on Arizona State or USC for the Pac 10 conference title in early December? Opponents of Pac 10 expansion and a conference championship game would say that the Ducks just beat the Trojans and Sun Devils. And this is very true. But do it twice. Or perhaps with an expanded league Oregon may not have played Southern Cal or ASU during the regular season.

The bottom line is that half the BCS conferences and their teams have a harder road to a potential title. Win your division to get a shot at your conference title. Win your conference title in hopes of getting into the BCS Championship Game. It certainly makes their potentially championship path much harder than that of teams in the Pac 10, Big 10 and Big East.

Sooner or later my guess is you will see expansion in the Big 10, Pac 10, and Big East. When this does happen you will see the landscape of college football slightly change and hopefully this will lead to a potential playoff, although that is a topic for another Blitz.

Jamie, I appreciate the tactful (and classy) way you handled the question about Ohio State (Big Ten) vs. SEC and the right to play for a national championship (last week). But our SEC comrades in all their complaints continue to miss one major point about the right to play for a national championship. If you want to "even the playing field" then even the admissions standards. Everyone knows that the SEC has much less stringent standards for student athletes, so if you really want to talk about a playoff and equalizing the playing field then the SEC must raise its admission's standards to really make it a fair fight. Your thoughts?
Mike
Milan, Ohio
Mike, I want to thank you for your nice comments regarding my column last week, but I disagree with you in terms of the academic standards between the Big 10 and SEC. First, the NCAA sets up the minimum academic guidelines for all football playing institutions. It is these individual universities that can ratchet up their own academic standards. But I honestly believe the academic differences between schools like Florida and LSU are negligible compared to that of Michigan and Ohio State.

The bottom line is that aside from the private institutions like a Duke, Vanderbilt, Notre Dame, Northwestern, Virginia, Stanford, etc., schools in the Big 10, Big East, SEC, ACC, etc., are recruiting mainly the same prospects. The difference is the level of the player. At the game’s highest level the perennial college football powers all recruit the big time prospect(s).

Philip Fulmer
With all of the talk of coaching changes what do you think about Phil Fulmer's chances of surviving another year in Knoxville? Do you look at him as the SEC's equivalent to Lloyd Carr?
Stan
Johnson City, Tennessee
Honestly, I think it would be downright asinine for the University of Tennessee to part ways with Philip Fulmer. I do understand the reasons why fans are angry and frustrated. First, Tennessee hasn’t won an SEC title since 1998, the same year they won the National Championship. The Vols have lost 13 games over the past three seasons including a 5-6 campaign in 2005. In their three losses this year to Cal., Florida and Alabama, the Tennessee defense gave up 145 points.

Yet despite the noise surrounding the program and three blowout defeats, the Volunteers control their own destiny in the SEC East. With wins against Vandy and Kentucky they will get a ticket to Atlanta for the SEC Championship game against LSU.

Fulmer has had a very good coaching career in Knoxville. All he has done was win 76% (144-44) of his games, has eight seasons of 10 or more wins, two SEC titles and a national title. He has also spent 34 seasons as a Vol as a player and coach. Do there need to be some changes at the University of Tennessee? Sure, but getting rid of one of the winningest coaches in the game is not one of them.

I look at Tennessee now and two things jump out at me that I believe the Vols need to address. When I think of Tennessee, the first thing that comes to mind is power football. In other words, for whatever reason, Tennessee has not been that dominant run team the past few years. Secondly, what the heck has happened to the Vol defense? Perhaps more of a commitment to the run game and identifying and addressing the defensive deficiencies would do the trick.

I do know this, the SEC, in particular the SEC East, is only getting tougher. Florida, Georgia, and South Carolina are all very young and very talented football teams. Kentucky and Vandy are on the rise. Fulmer and Tennessee have recruited well but it’s time for Fulmer to commit more to the run and make some changes on the other side of the ball. Lately, we are seeing Arian Foster and the Vol run game come to life and the Tennessee defense did have its best game of the year last week versus Arkansas.

You made mention of the Fulmer/Lloyd Carr analogy and I don’t think that’s a bad analogy at all. In fact, I think it’s a compliment to both coaches because I think they have both done very good jobs at both Tennessee and Michigan, especially considering how long both have been in Knoxville and Ann Arbor respectively.

Karl Dorrell
Should the Bruins keep or fire Karl Dorrell? If they fire him, who would replace him?
Michael
Salt Lake City, Utah
There is no question that UCLA (5-5) has been one of the big disappointments this season in college football. The Bruins were expected to be a top 10 team and contend for the Pac 10 title, especially coming off the huge season ending win against USC last year. UCLA was returning 20 starters (10 on each side of the ball). They had momentum in the off-season in terms of recruiting. UCLA was riding a nice wave. Then the ’07 season started.

So what went wrong for Head Coach Karl Dorrell and his Bruins?

I think it can best be attributed to two things, injuries and depth. Six starters are out for the entire season or missed at least four games due to injury. UCLA has started four different quarterbacks and they are currently on their fifth strong running back, who happened to be a walk-on. It’s been Murphy’s Law in terms of injuries and their depth issues at certain positions has only compounded the problems for Dorrell and his staff.

In five seasons at UCLA, Dorrell is 34-26. Sure they beat the No. 2 ranked Trojans last year to shock the college football world. It was a supposedly statement game for the other team in Los Angeles. Since then the Bruins have lost to Notre Dame and got whipped by Utah. They are currently on a three game losing streak with defeats to Washington State, Arizona and Arizona State. UCLA closes with No. 2 Oregon and they finish out the season against a USC team that will seek redemption.

How will this thing play out for UCLA and Dorrell? It looks like he will get his walking papers after the Southern Cal game. Even if the Bruins some how beat Oregon and USC it may just be a little too late for Dorrell.

While I can’t say it’s right for UCLA to fire him or wrong from the Bruins to retain him this is still a program searching for an identity. After five seasons and five recruiting classes depth shouldn’t be a problem for the Bruins. Certainly injuries like they have sustained this season would have taken its toll on just about anyone but you can’t deny the losses. As someone said to me recently, their big wins have been overshadowed by some bad losses.

So who would be one the short lists of candidates for UCLA if indeed the job did open up? I think you will hear a lot about Mike Leach (Texas Tech) and Chris Peterson (Boise State). A few that may have a chance are Norm Chow (Tennessee Titans Offensive Coordinator), Rich Brooks (Kentucky) and Steve Mariucci. Watch out for Leach with this job. He has done a fantastic job in Lubbock with the Red Raiders. Leach is also from California and did get a law degree from Pepperdine. He also happens to be one of the brightest offensive minds in the game. In eight seasons at Texas Tech he is 62-37.

UCLA would prefer a proven head coach but could possibly go for a proven coordinator like Chow. There is talk that some prominent money people from UCLA would love to make a run at Mariucci. Brooks has some obvious Pac 10 ties from the many years he spent at Oregon. He also served as an assistant coach under Dick Verneil while he was at UCLA. But I have to believe Leach has a great shot at this one and it could be a nice pairing with Leach and Walker or another quality defensive coordinator. His scheme would seem to fit in quite while in the Pac 10.

The domino effect with this job could impact recruiting. The Bruins have been sitting on a top three class since the summer. Most of their commitments are from a 50 mile radius of campus. A big reason why is Defensive Coordinator Dewayne Walker. If Dorrell is fired and Walker is not retained things could quickly implode in terms of recruiting. They will likely lose a handful of kids, potentially to Arizona State and Oregon, if Walker were to leave. A key date could be the third weekend of December, when all the Briuin commitments will be asked to make their official visit to UCLA.

The bottom line is this, UCLA has to make the decision they feel is best for their program. The conference is getting tougher. It’s no longer USC and nine other teams. Oregon, Oregon State, and ASU are ascending while teams like UCLA and Arizona continue to underachieve.

Sam Bradford
Why isn’t Sam (Big Easy) Bradford mentioned in the Heisman voting. He has all but dominated the Big 12. I know Chase Daniels is a good quarterback, but Bradford has the weapons to win the National Championship.
Shane
Oklahoma
Shane, there is no question that Bradford’s name should be talked about in terms of the Heisman Trophy. After all, he has led Oklahoma to a 9-1 record, throwing for over 2,500 yards, 28 touchdown passes and completing 70% of his passes. Not bad for a freshman. And that’s the reason we don’t hear his name more, because he is a freshman.

Speaking of freshman, have you noticed the numbers Texas Tech wide receiver Michael Crabtree has posted in his first ten games? He has caught 117 passes for 1,707 yards and 20 touchdowns. Not only are those the most impressive numbers in the Big 12 but perhaps the entire country. Maybe he should be mentioned as well with the Heisman?

Mack Brown
Why do you think that Texas has not had the success nationally in recruiting that other recent national champion caliber teams have had like Florida, Ohio State, LSU, and especially USC? While the state of Texas has plenty of talent, they have not had any big time out of state players the last couple years, except four stars like Blaine Irby and Lamarr Houston. Also, what are the chances of the Longhorns getting Terrelle Pryor or any other big five star players this year?
Eric
Austin, Texas
Eric, if you follow the Longhorns and recruiting then you must know that Texas is one of the best and most consistent powers in terms of recruiting this decade. The Longhorns are the flagship in the state that produces the most 1-A talent in college football. For the most part, Mack Brown and Texas get to pick from the largest talent pool in the country of what’s in their backyard. Sure they lose a few (mainly to Oklahoma) but in reality a team like Texas doesn’t need to recruit outside the Lone Star State.

Here is what Texas has done so well over the past few seasons. They get their scholarship offers out early, get those prospects to commit in the spring and usually by the time the May Evaluation Period starts, they are already working towards the next year’s recruiting class. It’s been this cycle that has kept Texas in front of the pack, not only in the Big 12, but in college football in terms of recruiting.

They can only do this because of the state they are in. This is why they do recruit so few kids outside the state of Texas. Why? Things get tougher when you cross the borders into a neighboring state. There, you are taking on the respective in-state power(s). Just look at two fairly recent quarterback commitments that they had in Ryan Perrilloux and John Brantley. Both signal callers reneged on their initial decision and signed with their respective in-state power in LSU and Florida.

This is simply a strategy that Coach Brown and his staff elect to go by. Certainly they could go the route like Ohio State, Florida and USC where they would recruit their home state hard and spot recruit other areas. But Texas doesn’t want to and they feel they don’t need to. In fact they really recruit outside the state of Texas only if a particular prospect shows great interest in the Longhorns.

Just remember that each staff is different in philosophy in terms of recruiting and this is the path that Brown has chosen to take. It has worked well for Texas, as he has won a National Championship and made Texas relevant once again in college football.

If you look at this season, the Longhorns have 19 commitments. Only one, safety Nolan Brewster (Denver, Co.), is from out of state. Brewster is one of the top prospects at safety, a high four-star recruit and a member of the Scout.com National Top 100. They are in the hunt for five-star quarterback Terrelle Pryor (Jeannette, Pa.), five-star running back Darrell Scott (Ventura, Calif.), and five-star linebacker Lynn Katoa (Salt Lake City, Utah). Of that trio they have the best shot at Katoa.

Chris Wells
Year in, year out, the Buckeyes have been one of the most competitive teams in the nation. During Coach Tressell's tenure, we have had one recruiting class ranked as high as No. 2, while the rest have been between 8 and 18. While I believe that our coaching is some of the best out there, what else can explain the way the Buckeyes take so many three and four star players and turn them into studs?
JW Hoyt
Columbus, Ohio
It takes more then just recruiting great prospects. You have to make sure they get in school (and stay in school) but most importantly, you have to develop and nurture that talent and Ohio State has done that so well over the years, even in the previous regime.

You always hear that adage it’s not about the Xs and Os but about the Jimmy and Joes. There is some truth to that, no question about it. You have to have talent to win. But you also have to coach them up and develop them as players and Jim Tressell and his staff have done that as well as anyone in the nation.

In regards to recruiting, the difference between a top five class and a top 10 class is pretty small, maybe one player. The difference between top 10 and top 20 is small as well.

I have always said don’t get too caught up in rankings. Just hope your team is recruiting players that fill your team needs, get them in school, keep them in school, and develop them as players. Then, as coaches, you need to put them in position to make plays. It’s a chain of events that have to happen to make a program great.

Nigel Bradham
It seems like the linebacker position is very deep this season. Jamie, if you were a coach who would you offer first at middle, strong side and weak side linebacker? In other words, if you had only three scholarships and you needed one ‘backer at each of those positions, who would you want?
Pete
Madison, Florida
Good question and a tough question. First, let me say, I think this is one of the strongest years for linebackers I have seen in the 15 plus seasons I have covered college football recruiting.

Our top prospect in the country, Arthur Brown (Wichita, Ka.), would get my first offer and I do believe Brown could play any one of those three positions but is better suited on the outside. I love his speed, instincts and aggressiveness. He reminds me of our top prospect from a few seasons ago in Ernie Sims (FSU, Detroit Lions). People have knocked his competition and sure there is some credence to that. But I can’t penalize Arthur Brown because he lives in Kansas. And I also remember that great players have emerged from small towns playing against questionable competition. Herschel Walker, arguably the greatest college football player of all-time, played in the smallest classification in Georgia. Did that make Walker overrated when he came out?

At middle linebacker my offer would likely go to Nigel Bradham (Crawfordville, Fla.) over Lynn Katoa. Bradham has great size and speed and so does Katoa while on the weak side I would offer Ramon Buchanan (Melbourne, Fla.). Like Brown, Buchanan has great closing speed to the football and is a tremendous hitter.

Mark Mangino
With the Jayhawks having such an outstanding season they are likely to see a spike in recruiting. Who are the top recruits that Kansas has a legitimate shot at landing? Tyler
Scott City, Kansas
Kansas is hands down the biggest story of this college football season. The Jayhawks are living the dream season and are two wins away from a perfect regular season and a match up with the Sooners for the Big 12 Championship and a possible shot at a national title. Yes, we are talking about Kansas football!

Regardless of how they finish over the final two weeks I think it’s safe to that Kansas will get a spike in recruiting this year but won’t receive the big bump until next year (Class of 2009). That’s where you typically see a team recruit well after having that breakout season. This will hold true for teams like South Florida, UConn, Cincinnati and the others that have played beyond their expectations.

Things will be a little different for Kansas in the aspect that they don’t have a deep talent prospect pool in their backyard. So they will still have to go out of state and win the big recruiting battles. But certainly the season they had will go a long way to helping them, no doubt about that. Trust me, the prospects in the Class of 2009, 2010 and beyond all see what has happened Lawrence and I truly believe the Jayhawks will recruit better and better because of their emergence this season.