American college football gets going this weekend and the sport has not been short of story-lines.
For starters there is the abundance of controversy and scandal affecting numerous schools. The latest victim is the Miami Hurricanes, who have seen the eligibility of top quarterback Jacory Harris thrown into question.
Then there is the conference shake-up where universities are aligning themselves to different groups. Recent powerhouse Texas Christian University signed on with the Big East Conference, the University of Utah joined the Pacific-12 Conference (formerly called the Pac-10) and Brigham Young University became an independent football school (a la Notre Dame).
Even last year’s finalists have produced some drama of their own. Reigning champions Auburn have a tough road to a repeat with the arrival of 19 new starters and the departure of Heisman Trophy winner Cam Newton. Meanwhile the Oregon Ducks were caught up in a recruiting scandal though they bring back a number of important offensive players like running back LaMichael James.
Through it all the title picture is anything but clear. In spite of the sanctions and shake-ups, a number of schools are capable of a national championship. Oklahoma is the preseason number one team and have an explosive quarterback in Landry Jones. The other early favourites, University of Alabama and Boise State University, have star talent in the form of the Crimson Tide’s Trent Richardson and the Broncos’ Kellen Moore.
All of those schools are in action this week. The National Collegiate Athletic Association division one football season started on Thursday and there are a number of interesting match-ups on tap this Saturday. Of note is Appalachian State versus Virginia Tech at 11.30am, South Florida battling Notre Dame at 2.30pm and Oregon against Louisiana State University at 7pm (Cayman time).
In my opinion the team to watch might just be Oregon. In spite of the scandal, the fact is key parts of the starting offence (among the best in all of college football) return from last year. James is a serious threat charging out of the backfield and if he can come close to replicating his 2010 season of 24 touchdowns and 1,939 yards then the Ducks should plough through their conference and ride their juggernaut offence to another title shot.
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