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College Football for Palm Nuts


bubba

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Got some rabid excitement on this topic in the other Thread.I believe it is unfair to carry on this discussion under the previous nefarious label.Not that I take anything back but I genuinely hope good things for USC and their program except when they play Florida.They are Good !

That stated,I would like to encourage us Palm/College Football Nuts to have ongoing discussions on this Thread.I would encourage politeness but no problem discussing the virtues of your Alma Mater's prowess.I would also urge that we respond to each well thought out Post even if it involves team's we do not know alot about.I truly do not know much about the teams in the Pac-10 but am interested.I only request that this Thread not be hijacked to dicuss matters like the"dismal fate of encephalitis victims in the British Virgin Islands".

Let the Smack begin.Florida just jumped to #1 recruiting ranking according to Rivals with the Commitment of former Notre Dame Commitment DT/5star Omar Hunter.Florida's class is almost entirely defense with the exception of a young man by the name of Jeff Demps,who is the fastest highschooler in America(10.2-100) and averaged just under 11yards per carry.He also played corner.Also the Hun, another 5 star 6'8 specimen ,whose Dad and Uncle played for the Hurricanes before the Pro's.Quite a feat having a young man ,who grew up a Hurricane fan pull the trigger for Florida.Offensively we look strong even with little incoming recruits.Stockpiled a stud /speed merchant wide receiver(10.3-100)Deonte Thompson ,who Coach P visited many times in Belle Glade.Also,what's that running back's name who transferred fom USC to Florida?

What you look for is what is looking

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Good idea, Bubba.

Don't forget Carl Moore - He is a JC WR transfer out of CA that SC was also recruiting. He is supposed to be the real deal but we are stacked at WR. I hear his girlfriend became good friends with CUM and got a gymnastics schollie out of the deal as well  :D  :D

SC's class won't be the usual, #1 stacked with 5 star players this year. A lot of O line and D line guys which is what we need right now to keep this thing going. If we can keep Joe Adams and land a sleeper I will be happy. We are stacked on offense and next years class is already looking really, really good.

The USC transfer was Moody. Good RB but we are loaded there and I think he was having doubts about getting the carries he wanted. He had a good freshman year. Watch out for this guys Uncle - he is a handful.

There is a little bad blood between Florida and USC over this. Not so much Moody transferring - if the guy doesn't want to compete for playing time, he will be granted a transfer.

After Moody transferred, another player on the roster, Jamere Holland, started telling other players he was going to transfer, and recruited them to join him. Pete kicked Holland off the team and said something to the effect of "somebody is tampering with our players, and I have a pretty good idea who it is."

Pete granted Holland's transfer to any school outside of the Pac 10 (standard OP) except...Florida.

Reading between the lines it is pretty clear who Pete thought was tampering. Florida had recently hired Holland's high school coach, who he lived with in high school. That coach admitted to keeping in close contact with Holland.

Laguna Niguel, CA

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Jenks,I have heard all about it!I guess I better keep my mouth shut before we get thrown in the pokey first.I guess it is just part of the package.

I am not crying too hard for your slower than normal year. I have no idea how Coach P keeps all those 5 stars happy while they ride the pine.There must be some very attractive Co-ed's or.....Now that was not fair or appropriate and I just giving examples.

By the way,what does the rest of the Pac-10 look like for next year.Any Oregon's with Dennis Dixon.That guy was Good!

What you look for is what is looking

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He did end up at Oregon eventually. Normally, teams will not release a kid to a conference school - SC is no different. It is possible to transfer anyway if you pay your own way. Holland went through a couple of hearings at SC and they granted the transfer but I also read he is getting financial aid. Not sure what that means - maybe doesn't have a full ride?

All I know is he couldn't stay healthy and his rep was he didn't like working hard. That won't work here no matter how talented you are. Stafon Johnson is a good example. Many think he is our best RB. He spent his whole freshman year riding the pine while fellow freshman Moody and Gable got lots of carries. The Reason? He thought he had it all figured out and was not putting the work in at practice. He had a 180 degree turnaround this year and it showed on the field.

Laguna Niguel, CA

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I just checked out ESPN recruiting rankings and Florida has moved to #1.ESPN is generally better respected than some of the other outfits that tend to give ratings based upon who pays them the most(ie.Notre Dame still #1 according to Tom Lemming)Personally since that story from the Middle Ages,Lemmings have scared me to death.

Recruiting is obviously an inexact science.However,I count 4 SEC schools in the top11 and see only one Pac-10(ieUSC)at #8.Also,I see your top recruit is Bryce Butler,whose Dad played at FSU and lives in Norcross,Ga.You guys better hang on tight because when Mommy starts crying...

One of Florida's best player's gets no respect.Janoris Jenkins from Pahokee,Fl.(ever hear of the Muck Bowl?)I bet you a fully grown Coconut Palm that Coach P has.A good friend, who is a big Seminole Booster told me about Janoris when he was in the 10th grade.He said that Janoris was the best athlete he had seen since Deon Sanders.Many times the boy's from Pahokee go to FSU.Since he elected to go to UF,his stock has seemingly dropped.He enrolled early at UF and I am looking forward to watching him in Orange and Blue.

One more about Pahokee.My oldest son and I were out in the Glades. We saw what looked like a palm farm.I knocked on the door of the house and and a very large black man answered the door. He was extremely nice and showed us all around and had some out of the ordinary stuff.I could tell he enjoyed showing it to us.When I  say this guy was big,I am not kidding.He was only about 6'4 but was very stout and although he was my age,he was strong as an Ox.We had such a good time that he gave me a card and his cell-phone.The gentleman was Anquan Boldin's dad(FSU/Arizona?)I also met Anquan but I guarantee Anquan would walk very lightly around his oldman even today.That guy was ripped and I bet he never came close to a Weight room!

What you look for is what is looking

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I am not as worried about Butler as I am with Adams taking another look at Arkie.

SC only has 15 commits right now and still, they are ranked that high. They have averaged 4 stars or better 4 years in a row now. Like you said, though it is far from an exact science.

I expect a  sleeper commit in addition to (hopefully) Telemaque and Casey. Oh yeah, did you hear that Matt Barkley (Gatoraide Player of the year as a JUNIOR) commited to SC? Next years class could one of the best ever.

To address one of your earlier questions about the rest of the Pac 10. I like that QB up in Washington, Jake Locker. One tough kid. Reminds me of Tebow. I think they picked up a really good RB as well.

UCLA had a pretty good class going nut it looks like some of them are backing off if not de-commiting all together like the LB that switched to BYU. With Chow in the mix, who knows what happens.

ASU is pulling a decent class and should get better fast.

Cool story about Boldin's dad

Laguna Niguel, CA

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Are you guys recruiting any of those outstanding California running backs? Darrell Scott and Milton Knox are absolute studs.I guess you are so loaded that they would simply ride the pine!

People hate Tebow stories but I finish with one. Tebow entered Florida early(Spring)when he was 17.He worked out with the Offensive lineman because he was kind of big.He advanced quickly and at the end of Spring,they had the "Weight room Check-up".Tebow was apparently getting close to 255Lbs.Our Senior starting center(6'6/320) did 225Lbs 33 times and was leader in the clubhouse.Before Tebow lined it up, the strenghth coach whispered something in his ear.Strenghth Coach told Tebow it was inappropriate to outlift your starting center. Tebow did 225Lbs 32 times.

What you look for is what is looking

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No love for USC here, sorry. Even after living in So Cal for a few years this Tiger is all SEC!

Ever since we were labeled co-National Champions in 2003, I'm still bitter. I was really hoping LSU would get the chance to settle it with USC this year, but they decided to fall to an 50-1 longshot, (uh humm) Stanford.

But, either way, I'm happy with the crystal and the way things turned out this year.

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Michael,Those Tigers are on a very impressive run. How do they look next year?

LSU is my second favorite team. Love those colors and that Stadium is wild,especially at night.We got a group that travels to New Orleans on the Thursday prior to the game.Wild and the best food in the world! First thing I do is travel to the Central Grocery and buy 10 Maflatas(SP?)and then down the street to the Cafe and buy two large bags of Benyas(SP?)Pat O'brien's hurricanes are a must(Did those big one's in college)and thereafter the Institutions are beyond belief.Nothing to me beats the Oak room and food at Commander's Palace.What a great state and Wild football fans!

What you look for is what is looking

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Ladies and Gentlemen-(NSD)-Let the smack begin.I can only accept ESPN rankings as fair in that the other services are blatant homers.Lemming is a Domer.Hey Charlie can I have another bite of your ham sandwich?Without mentioning them by name,they all service their respective clientele based upon payment in US Dollars.Perhaps they should consider the Euro?

Top twenty as follows:1 Miami;2Clemson;3Alabama;4Florida;5Georgia;6USC;7Ohio State;8Oklahoma;9Domer;10Texas;11LSU;12FSU;13Meatchicken;14UCLA;15Virginia Tech;16Illinois;17Arizona State;18Arkansas;19Auburn;20NC State.

A couple of observations:The U(Miami) had 12 members of the ESPN top 150,over half who came from the ESPN top high school team Miami North-Western.The problem is they are almost all defensive players.How is the U going to score.Shannon is a good guy but I question his judgment.Randy played linebacker at the U and in the pro's but needs to consider Offense;SEC had 6 teams in the Top Twenty,ACC had 5,Big Ten had 3,Pac-10 had 3 and Big-12 had 2.

Looks like USC signed a total of twenty with eight in the ESPN Top 150.You got a great one in TJ Bryant from Tallahasee,Fl.Sidebar-a former running backs deposition is scheduled Feb 12.

Florida signed 22,11 of whom are in the ESPN Top 150. The top players were all defensive and will have an immediate impact.We did get one outstanding receiver from California in Carl Moore.By the way,Coach Meyer immediately reported the possible indiscretion to the NCAA regarding Carl Moore's recruiting and was cleared by the NCAA in a week.I can't figure out Coach Carroll's obstinence.

OK Dogs, let the smack begin!

What you look for is what is looking

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C'mon, Bubba. Give it a rest re: CPC and the NCAA. There is full cooperation there and it has nothing to do with recruiting violations.

If you have any evidence of recruiting violations or negative recruiting tactics by CPC, I would love to hear/see it. On the other hand, I wouldn't have to look too hard to find the same for Meyer   :P  :D

Regarding this year - Florida does very well again.  Questionable tactics aside, Meyer can recruit well. Let's see if he can develop the talent.

Another solid class for USC. This was a year that SC went after what they needed - OL, DL. They signed 19 players, actually and had a DB transfer.

One thing about CPC - he goes after guys that want to compete and gives freshman every opportunity to get on the field. More than half of the incoming freshman played the last couple of years. You won't see him pull in a class of 32 players knowing that some will not qualify or will need to greyshirt (Alabama).

Getting TJ Bryant was huge. So was Brice Butler (GA.) and Nick Perry (MI).

Final thoughts on rankings. It would have been nice  to have the number one rated class 5 years in a row but it really does not mean much if you can't develop the talent or the guys just don't have it. The star ratings really don't mean a thing. Yeah there are a few can't miss guys but the rest are a crap shoot. When I see all the hype about certain players and their 5 star rating I always remember - Whitney Lewis was a top rated 5 star guy who has since transfered to South Eastern Michigan State, Troy Polomalu was a 2 star and is now an All Pro in the NFL.

Laguna Niguel, CA

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While I didn't think we'd be that low, I'm ok with the position. LSU will be poised for a solid year with a very talented QB R. Perriloux, if he can just stay out of trouble.

We'll have some great receivers back including Bradon LaFell and Terrance Tolliver. We are stacked in runningbacks with a high speed Keiland Williams and Richard Murphy. We will miss Jacob Hester dearly. The speedster Trindon Holliday will be back as well. Lost a few good defensive backs (Steltz, Zenon and JAckson) but a huge player Chad Jones will be a soph ready to deliver some hits.

Anyway, despite me looking forward to spring and summer for palm tree fun, I can't wait for football to be back!!

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Very happy about the U.  Bubba I think they spread it out very well as far as def and off. They signed 3 QB'S,2 highly rated FB and some WR's which included Aldarius Johnson. With the U being so bad last year I think Shannon was able to promise a lot of immediate playing time to guys. Carrol is a machine got quality over quantity and all over the country.

These ranking are very subjective though. Read a neat article on MSN sports the other day where they broke down the top 50? recruits of 2004. Very intresting on how things change after 4 years.

San Marcos CA

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Jenks,Are you against domestic tranquility? OK,no more barbs of that nature. Just jealous.

Can Urban coach them up? I have attended practices at UF under four different coaching staffs and have never seen a better run practice than Urban.His players are happy,treat their team as family and seem to buy into his discipline and character theme.Bellicheck calls him to discuss a plethora of concepts.Numerous players, who were on the wrong path, bad attitude and bad grades, have made substantial positive changes.All told,I am very happy to have a Coach at my school with his level of aptitude.

LSU will continue to be a major player.They have tremendous talent and if they can keep their Quarterback on the right track,they well could be Back to Backers.

The U is more of a question mark right now when you even talk to long time,knowledgeable Cane fans.They signed 33 players but seemed to take almost anyone who would sign.There are Major internal issues at Miami.The Athletic Department was 5 Million in the Hole last year and their President(Donna Shalala) is not as supportive of the Athletic Department as in the past.Nothwithstanding an incredible track record in the past,the potential players look very closely at the modern nature of the facilities and a host of other very expensive programs and ammenities that the U can no longer afford.Shannon was not their #1 candidate for Coach but was the only one they could afford.As proof,look only to the Hun's choice of Florida over the U even though he was a life-long Cane fan and both his Dad and Uncle played at the U before the NFL.

Changing the subject a bit,where(as in what State) do you see the Best High School ball played.I think this is important because it mirrors the best talent.In 2006,Lakeland High won the USA Today National Championship.Florida signed 7 players from that team.Miami/Northwestern won it in 2007,waxed the at that time #1 team from Houston and won the Florida Championship by beating an undefeated Orlando team 41-0.Their only competition was a very close game with one of the Miami teams.Even though they won,I did not like their style.They had no conventional drives and almost all of their points were scored defensively.Their tactic was interesting.Instead of tackling the Offensive player,the initial Defensive player would hold the guy with the ball up until Guy #2 would rip it away and usually score.I am not sure that is the way the game was meant to be played but they are physical.Is there still any interest in high school ball in Texas or even California?

What you look for is what is looking

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Bubba,

I think highly of Urban Meyer, and I have finally come around on Les Miles this past year. He went through a lot of crap but in the end maintained his integrity and honored hiw words. All that and passing on his Alma Mater Michigan. I am proud of that when I see it in a coach, something I doubt Nick Saban will ever find, even dispite the fact ultimtely his heart is in college football too. Urban and Nick semeed to get the best recruits, I wish them well for the SEC. This will be a true testiment of a year for Les. All his recruits now, let's see how he does.

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Micheal,I don't think you have too much to worry about. That Holliday kid is like a streaking meteor.I just hope he doesn't hit my Gators!

What you look for is what is looking

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Bubba, I should have included some smiley's in my post. I can take the smack  :D

Every year, there are more active NFL players from the state of California by a relatively large margin. Usually around 200. Florida is usually second with 170 -180. I'd say HS football is alive and well out west. Per capita, I think MS and LA place the most players in the NFL.

Shon, I think you are thinking of Joe Adams. SC wanted him as a corner and he wanted to play reciever. Looks like Petrino told him he would get a hundred balls thrown his way as a freshman. Getting TJ Bryant was a very good trade off - we need corners.

Laguna Niguel, CA

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John

You forgot Texas.  See: http://www.nflhs.com/news....sim.asp

Here you see CA with 198, Texas with 173, and Florida with 169 NFL players.  This works out to TX with 87% of the players to 67% of CA's population and Florida with 85% of the players to 50% of CA's population.

Steve

USDA Zone 9a/b, AHS Heat Zone 9, Sunset Zone 28

49'/14m above sea level, 25mi/40km to Galveston Bay

Long-term average rainfall 47.84"/1215mm

Near-term (7yr) average rainfall 55.44"/1410mm

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I knew I was forgetting something - I was going off recollection of the numbers in your link. Not sure how Texas slipped my mind.

Here is a more recent set of stats - 2004. Yours are from 2001. I don't see anything newer.

http://www.nflhs.com/News/Features/2004Roster/Default.asp

Long Beach Poly had the most NFL players at that time. It would be interesting to see the per-capita stats if CA was split in half. Most of the NFL caliber players come out of So Cal.

Laguna Niguel, CA

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Jenks,California with a population of 36,000,000 has 200 NFL players;Texas with a population of 23,000,000 has 174 players;Florida with a population of 17,000,000 has 173 players.I suggest you slowly and carefully remove foot from mouth.I think this shows where the "talent" comes from.

Steve,Happy to hear there are a few Texas ball fans albeit Rice Owls.You Rice intellects should be advised that the Owl represents the motiff of death in Native American culture.No more Jim Thorpe's for you guys!

Smack!

What you look for is what is looking

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(bubba @ Feb. 08 2008,13:56)

QUOTE
Changing the subject a bit,where(as in what State) do you see the Best High School ball played.I think this is important because it mirrors the best talent.In 2006,Lakeland High won the USA Today National Championship.Florida signed 7 players from that team.Miami/Northwestern won it in 2007,waxed the at that time #1 team from Houston and won the Florida Championship by beating an undefeated Orlando team 41-0.Their only competition was a very close game with one of the Miami teams.Even though they won,I did not like their style.They had no conventional drives and almost all of their points were scored defensively.Their tactic was interesting.Instead of tackling the Offensive player,the initial Defensive player would hold the guy with the ball up until Guy #2 would rip it away and usually score.I am not sure that is the way the game was meant to be played but they are physical.Is there still any interest in high school ball in Texas or even California?

Though I think the USA Today rankings is meaningless, Cincinnati has had 3 high schools nationally ranked in USA Today in the same year several times over the past few years including two schools of the four teams from my alma maters conference.

Florida, Ohio, California and Texas have the best high school football programs.

Ohio finally has some competition for Ohio State in University of Cincinnati. When I graduated from there, they were a basketball school, now it's starting to shift, but I think the basketball program will be competing for a Big East title next year.

Urban Meyer is a graduate of UC, so many people here in Cincinnati were happy for him when the Gators beat the Bucks for the National Title two years ago. Plus most people in Cincinnati aren't Buck fans, so most were happy to see Florida thoroughly destroy them 41-14.

Cincinnati, Ohio USA & Mindo, Ecuador

 

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Jake,Got to admit that guy Urban can coach.Unfortunately,Ohio's population is 11,500,000 and only 74 players in the NFL.Pain/Hurt/Smack!

What you look for is what is looking

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(bubba @ Feb. 11 2008,17:54)

QUOTE
Jenks,California with a population of 36,000,000 has 200 NFL players;Texas with a population of 23,000,000 has 174 players;Florida with a population of 17,000,000 has 173 players.I suggest you slowly and carefully remove foot from mouth.I think this shows where the "talent" comes from.

Uh...yeah. The "talent" comes from California. I wasn't making any per capita claims. If we were talking per capita rankings, Florida would be behind Hawaii  :D  :D

I posted the numbers to illustrate a point in reference to your question about the popularity of high school football outside of Florida. The numbers speak for themselves regardless of Cali's population.

If you drill down into specific area's of California, the per capita numbers get closer ( I said closer ) to Florida and Texas. The following graphic represents the highest concentration of NFL players within a 100 mile radius - 122 in Sol Cal

From http://rivals100.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=259348

Ground Zero for NFL Player Production

Click to View Larger Map

So, for curiosity’s sake, where can one live near the biggest NFL producing towns? It depends on how you define “live near.” NFL gold-digging groupies adorn spandex and take note. If you define “live near” as a 150 mile radius, or about two hours of highway driving, then Fairfield, Texas is the place. 135 NFL players attended high school within a 150 mile radius of Fairfield. Here is a map (larger circles denote more players attended high school in that city).

After Fairfield, comes Warrington, Pa., and several other small Pennsylvania and New Jersey Towns, which are within 150 miles of Washington DC, Philadelphia and New York and 134 NFL players’ former high schools. Next are Los Angeles and a series of bordering cities that are within 150 miles of 129 NFL players’ former high schools.

Click to View Larger Map

If you, instead, focus “live near” down to a 100 mile radius, Anaheim, Calif. and six cities very close thereto, lead. 122 NFL players went to high school within 100 miles of those cities (also interesting is that most of it is in a very tight corridor down the Pacific coast, with much of the circle covering ocean and non-producing desert):

134322.jpg

You can spin these numbers a million different ways - bottom line, Cali produces more talent.

Oh, Long Beach Poly - a single, California high school, has produced more nfl players than any other and currently share the lead for most active players with another California school, Concord De La Salle.

Also, California has more NBA players and has produced almost twice as many MLB players than the next closest state, NY.

That sting you feel on your backside, that's my foot  :D  :D

Laguna Niguel, CA

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Sooooeeee!I am going to have to break out my measuring stick and look closely at the Glades around Lake Okeechobee.Sparsely inhabitated compared to your area but Coach P comes a beggen out there on a regular basis.

What you look for is what is looking

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Jenks,No area in the US can compare per capita for NFL production than the Glades area. This includes those sparsely populated Towns like Belle Glade,Pahokee,Clewiston,Immokalee,Moore Haven and Okeechobee.

Belle Glade with a population of approximately 15,000 had 22 recent NFL players and in 2001 had 7 players from Glades Central,the most from any high school in the NFL that year.Belle Glade is the most populated town of those mentioned.Four from the school were 1st rounders.

It is so small that it barely shows up on maps. However,if you doubt my veracity,ask Coach P.Current Assistant FSU Head Coach,Jimbo Fisher,said there was more football talent around Lake Okeechobee than half the state of Alabama,when he was at Auburn.

What you look for is what is looking

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I don't know what it is about S. Florida guys, but they always have the best wide receivers. Tall and fast!

And I would have to take Jimbo's word on that. I could be biased though.

I don't like to get into who's got more people doing what; it's all about your team, who you compete against and where the top players want to be. Given that, I can honestly say the SEC and Pac-10 each have their fair share of talent. I was really impressed with the Big 12 this year. A big thumbs down for the Big 10.

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Bubba

Make that FL pop 19,000,000.

Steve

USDA Zone 9a/b, AHS Heat Zone 9, Sunset Zone 28

49'/14m above sea level, 25mi/40km to Galveston Bay

Long-term average rainfall 47.84"/1215mm

Near-term (7yr) average rainfall 55.44"/1410mm

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Steve,Details,details.I was trying very hard to get your goat and provoke some of those Texas truism's that I only see from you and Tad.Give me some of that "Tinned Horned Nancy" stuff. Oh well, you have just become to effetely intellectual!

What you look for is what is looking

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Don't get your cows runnin' there, Highpockets.....

USDA Zone 9a/b, AHS Heat Zone 9, Sunset Zone 28

49'/14m above sea level, 25mi/40km to Galveston Bay

Long-term average rainfall 47.84"/1215mm

Near-term (7yr) average rainfall 55.44"/1410mm

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I am predicting that if Ohio State beats USC next year that they will make a three-peat to the BCS NC game.  Michigan shouldn't be a threat next year, Illinois lost some key folks on defense and there running back and the rest of the Big10 appears to be soft, so barring an upset I see them running the table.

If they lose that game, I don't think they'll be allowed in even with a single loss.

Ohio State is pretty much returning their entire team.  I'm curious to know how the USC folks feel about the match-up and the strenghth of their current team.  This should be one of the top regular season games of the year.

This is coming from someone who IS NOT a fan of the Big10 and who doesn't want to see them in the game again.  Although I don't mind seeing them lose.

Jason

Gainesville, Florida

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It will be a tough match up, Tank. aOSU will be looking to prove something. I think they are going to run into a team on par with the LSU and FL teams that spanked them in the championship games.

SC is losing a bunch of starters. Good ones - 4-5 of them could be first round picks. We are very deep, though. The defense loses arguably the best DT in the country in Sed Ellis. His backups are very good, though, and lots of playing time last year. The linebackers, even with the loss of Keith Rivers, will be one of the top groups in the country. The SC defense next year should again be tops - or close to it - in the country. I know aOSU had the #1 defense last year and SC was #2, but if you take the D2 creampuffs off their schedule their numbers all of a sudden are not as impressive.

On offense, losing your starting QB is never good. We lose some very good OL too. Chilo Rachal leaving early really hurts. One thing they have going for them, though, with all the injuries last year we have starting experience at both positions and are loaded elsewhere.

It will be a tough game. Carroll has alot of time to prepare, though and one thing SC has done well under CPC is come through in big games, particularly out of conference.

It will be fun. Got to get by Virginia on the road first !

Laguna Niguel, CA

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Although the thought of Ohio State playing again in the National Championship is repugnant, it certainly seems to be a real possibility given the"talking heads" tendency towards selective forgetfulness.I do think that Laurenitis was the exception to a very mediocre team that has become a Hallmark of the Big Ten. I believe Meatchicken was the best team in the Big Ten and not because they beat Florida.That was a mature team loaded with seniors,who suffered numerous injuries during the season that did not help their cause.Florida,on the other hand,is extremely young and got appropriately schooled.

To me the true match up for last season would have been USC and LSU.Although I hate to admit it, Georgia played at a high level near the end of the year also.They are also young.That means we maybe looking at a pivotal game in Jacksonville next year.

The question is whether Florida can upgrade on Defense.Tremendous developing talent on the Defensive Front,which should be two deep with serious time spent putting on strength in the weightroom.This should allow more pressure on the Quarterback.Linebackers are fine. Cornerbacks,do we have cornerbacks?

What you look for is what is looking

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  • 1 month later...

Spring Practise begins March 19,2008 for UF.Mat Drills are over and the hitting starts.The Spring game,although rather meaningless,will be televised by ESPN in April.

What you look for is what is looking

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Jason,Kind of looking forward to attending the Miami and Hawai games at a minimum.The Biggie this year looks to be against the Leghumpers over in Cowford.

What you look for is what is looking

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Got to see some pictures of the Florida players after and during the First Spring Practice.This is a strong group of Hombres with some rather incredible speed.They also have some big time talent coming in that promises to be strong.Omar Hunter is somewhat of a freak as a true freshman.Just under 6'2 at 327lbs and runs a 4.7.

My nephew's team in Atlanta had the pleasure of playing Omar's team in the Georgia State finals in their division.(Lovett vs Buford)They ran Omar at Fullback for grins until Mercy rules kicked in 50-0.Omar's teamate,TJ Pridemore will also be a Gator next year.His Dad played for the Falcons for 10 years.He is a rugged young man himself at 6'2 240lbs.Both these guys look 30 years old.My nephew said their goal was to get off the field as quickly as possible because their Coach told them someone could get hurt really bad.Not the kind of Pep talk you would expect in State Championship game but probably very good advise.

What you look for is what is looking

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Bubba,

I might go to the Blue and Orange game this year.  Will be my first time, but this year and the next, barring injuries, should be very good for us and I'm interested to see how the running backs look.  If only Keaston Moore could get over his fumble-itis.  He has great stats, but the coaches are afraid to give him the ball after the Georgia game.  That was his game to shine and it didn't happen.

Jason

Gainesville, Florida

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