Rich Ellerson has injected new life into the Army football program in just two seasons on the job. Their head man is just one game below .500 with a 12-13 record the past two years, and he led the Black Knights to a bowl game and a winning record for the first time since 1996 last season. Not only did Army reach the postseason in 2010, they were victorious by topping SMU 16-14 in the Armed Forces Bowl. With only 11 returning starters from a team that went 7-6 last season, it will be tough for the...
Read more about 2011 Army Football Predictions 2011 Navy Football Predictions - July 12, 2011The Navy football program has stood up to Notre Dame over the past few seasons. They beat the Irish for the first time in 44 years in a triple-overtime thriller back in 2007. The Midshipmen have now won three of the last four meetings overall, while taking four straight Independent championships in the process. Navy is coming off a 9-4 campaign from 2010, improving Ken Niumatalolo’s record to 27-14 in his three seasons as their head man. Service academies don’t usually have many returning starters,...
Read more about 2011 Navy Football Predictions 2011 BYU Football Predictions - July 11, 2011Head coach Bronco Mendenhall took over a BYU football program in 2005 that was coming off three consecutive losing seasons. He guided them to a 6-6 record that year, and the Cougars went on to produce four straight 10-win seasons from 2006 to ‘09. BYU fell to 7-6 last season in a rebuilding year, but finished strong with a 5-1 record over their final six contests in 2010. Their lone loss during that time was a 16-17 setback at then-No. 23 Utah. Mendenhall now owns a 56-21 record in his six seasons...
Read more about 2011 BYU Football Predictions 2011 Notre Dame Football Predictions - July 11, 2011Notre Dame hired Brian Kelly with the thought in mind that he would eventually bring them a national championship. The Fighting Irish got off to a shaky start in his first year on the job, but rebounded nicely down the stretch to finish 8-5 on the season. Notre Dame would win its final four games, which included blowout victories over Utah, Army and Miami (FL), along with a huge road win at USC. This team now comes into the 2011 season with a ton of momentum and national championship aspirations. The...
Read more about 2011 Notre Dame Football Predictions 2011 Independents Football Predictions - July 11, 2011Four years ago Navy beat Notre Dame for the first time in 44 years. They have won three of four meetings since, including last season’s 35-17 victory. The Midshipmen beat both the Irish and the Army Black Knights in 2010 to take home the Independent Championship. It was the fourth straight year that Navy finished as the #1 Independent, compiling a 35-18 record over that span. All three teams played in a bowl game last season, and the conference gets even stronger with the addition of a new team. The...
Read more about 2011 Independents Football Predictions 2011 Memphis Football Predictions - July 7, 2011Things can only get better from here for head coach Larry Porter and the Memphis Tigers. Porter’s first season on the job was one to forget as the Tigers went 1-11 in 2010. They were by far the worst team in Conference USA. Memphis was outgained by a whopping 149.5 yards/game and outscored by 22.8 points/game in league play. Porter wasn’t left with much to work with when he took over the job, and he won’t have a whole lot more this season. That’s because the Tigers return the fewest starters...
Read more about 2011 Memphis Football Predictions 2011 Marshall Football Predictions - July 7, 2011It was a tale of two seasons wrapped into one for the Marshall Thundering Herd last season. They started the year 1-6 through their first seven games, which included a painful 21-24 overtime loss to rival and then-No. 23 West Virginia after blowing a big fourth quarter lead. The Herd rebounded nicely down the stretch, going 4-1 over their final six contests. It was clear that Doc Holliday never lost control of the team in his first year on the job, and it’s a great sign heading into his second...
Read more about 2011 Marshall Football Predictions 2011 UAB Football Predictions - July 6, 2011The UAB Blazers are coming off a 4-8 season in 2010 which featured several close calls along the way. They nearly beat two SEC opponents, but lost to Tennessee 29-32 in double-overtime after missing five field goal attempts. They also held a 24-23 lead over Mississippi State in the fourth quarter, but eventually lost 24-29. The Blazers did pick up a signature win in a 50-49 double-overtime victory at Southern Miss in Conference USA play. I have USM winning CUSA’s East division this season, so UAB...
Read more about 2011 UAB Football Predictions 2011 East Carolina Football Predictions - July 6, 2011The East Carolina Pirates were one of the most exciting football teams in the country last season. They played like an Arena League team, putting up a ton of points on offense, while allowing the opposition to post monster numbers against their defense. ECU managed a 6-7 record and a bowl bid in Ruffin McNeil’s first year as head coach. They would lose 20-51 to Maryland in the Military Bowl, and enter the 2011 season having lost three straight and five of their last six overall. The Pirates welcome...
Read more about 2011 East Carolina Football Predictions 2011 Central Florida Football Predictions - July 6, 2011The UCF Knights are coming off one of their most successful seasons in school history. Central Florida posted an 11-3 record overall, won Conference USA’s East division with a 7-1 mark, and went on to beat SMU 17-7 in the title game. The CUSA champs wouldn’t stop there as they beat Georgia 10-6 in the Liberty Bowl, pulling off one of the biggest upsets in the postseason. That win over the Bulldogs showed that they could play with anyone, and really put UCF on the map in terms of recruiting going...
Read more about 2011 Central Florida Football Predictions 2011 Southern Miss Football Predictions - July 5, 2011The Southern Miss Golden Eagles are coming off a season of near misses that cost them a chance to win Conference USA’s East division. USM handed East champion UCF their lone conference defeat last year, but two 1-point losses to East Carolina and UAB, along with a 50-56 setback at Tulsa allowed the Knights to win the East. They finished 8-5 overall, including 5-3 in CUSA play. This team featured the most explosive offense in the conference, but their defense let them down. Southern Miss is in good...
Read more about 2011 Southern Miss Football Predictions 2011 UTEP Football Predictions - July 5, 2011The UTEP Miners got off to a tremendous start last season, going 5-1 through their first six games. They would lose five of their last six in the regular season, but still managed to make a bowl game despite that brutal finish. The Miners went on to get embarrassed by BYU in the New Mexico Bowl by a final of 52-24. This is a team that played through injuries on offense last season, and weren’t able to stop anyone on defense. The Miners have the third-fewest returning starters (11) in all of Conference...
Read more about 2011 UTEP Football Predictions 2011 Tulane Football Predictions - July 4, 2011The Tulane Green Wave finished dead last in Conference USA’s West division for a second straight season in 2010. They went 2-6 in league play and finished 4-8 for the season. This was a classic case where a team played better than their record. The Green Wave outgained Marshall by 139 yards in a losing effort, held a 28-17 edge in first downs against Southern Miss in a loss, had more first downs than SMU in defeat, and were only outgained by 18 yards against Houston in their setback to the Cougars. With...
Read more about 2011 Tulane Football Predictions 2011 Rice Football Predictions - July 1, 2011The Rice football program has fallen on hard times over the past two years since putting together a shocking 10-3 season in 2008. They went 2-10 in ‘09 and finished 4-8 last season. This team did pick up some nice wins last year, including a 34-31 victory over Houston and a 62-38 triumph against East Carolina. With 17 returning starters and 53 letterman coming back for the 2011 season, the Owls have a chance to challenge for a bowl game, while also pulling off a few upsets along the way. I’m...
Read more about 2011 Rice Football Predictions 2011 SMU Football Predictions - July 1, 2011Head coach June Jones has already turned around this SMU football program in just three years on the job. It was a tough start as the Mustangs went 1-11 in 2008, but they had an incredible turnaround in 2009 when they finished 8-5 and reach a bowl game. Jones led SMU to the conference title game last year after winning the Conference USA West division. They would lose 7-17 to UCF, and go on to fall to Army 14-16 in the Armed Forces Bowl. With the most returning starters (18) in the conference, the...
Read more about 2011 SMU Football Predictions 2011 Tulsa Football Predictions - June 30, 2011Todd Graham leaves the Tulsa football program in good hands. Graham spent four years here and managed to put together back-to-back double-digit wins for the first time in school history. Last year’s team went 10-3 and finished ranked #24 in the final AP poll after a 62-35 victory in the Hawai’i bowl over the Warriors. The Golden Hurricane carry a seven-game winning streak into this season, and are in great shape for their new head coach after Graham bolted for Pittsburgh. Bill Blankenship takes...
Read more about 2011 Tulsa Football Predictions 2011 Houston Football Predictions - June 30, 2011The Houston Cougars came into the 2010 season with high expectations after going 10-4 in 2009. Injuries plagued them all year as QB Case Keenum was forced to take a medical redshirt after getting hurt against UTEP and knocked out for the season versus UCLA. The Cougars would struggle without their starting QB, falling to 5-7 on the year while missing out on a bowl game. With Keenum earning a sixth year of eligibility, this team is primed to make a run at the Conference USA title. Houston welcomes...
Read more about 2011 Houston Football Predictions 2011 Conference USA Football Predictions - June 29, 2011The balance between the East and West divisions of Conference USA was pretty impressive heading into the 2010 season. They had split their games 20-20 and titles 2-2 over the previous four seasons since this conference went to two divisions. The East had the edge 10-8 last year, and also produced the best team in the UCF Knights as they beat the SMU Mustangs 17-7 in the title game. The Knights would go on to beat Georgia in the Liberty Bowl and finish #21 in the final polls, marking the first time...
Read more about 2011 Conference USA Football Predictions 2011 Kansas Football Predictions - June 29, 2011After resurrecting the Buffalo football program in 2009, head coach Turner Gill finally got the job he wanted. Gill suffered through some growing pains in his first year at Kansas, but was able to must up a few wins and a 3-9 record. He has little to work with in only 11 returning starters last season, and the team really struggled as a result. A 3-6 loss to North Dakota State in their opener certainly showed that it was going to be a rebuilding year for Gill. They would beat then-#15 Georgia Tech...
Read more about 2011 Kansas Football Predictions 2011 Iowa State Football Predictions - June 28, 2011The Iowa State Cyclones are headed in the right direction under head coach Paul Rhodes. He took ISU to a bowl game in his first season in 2009 when they finished 7-6. They had a chance at a bowl game last year, but would lose their last three to fall to 5-7 for the season. The Cyclones took Nebraska to overtime, lost at Colorado, and fell to Missouri at home over the final three weeks. Rhoads is a local guy who has won over the hearts of Cyclone fans in Ames, IA after Gene Chizik left this program...
Read more about 2011 Iowa State Football Predictions 2011 Baylor Football Predictions - June 28, 2011The Baylor Bears reached a bowl game for the first time since 1994 last season. They would get embarrassed by Illinois 14-38 in the Texas Bowl, but it was still a very productive season at 7-6. While they only beat one team with a winning record last year, head coach Art Briles has this program moving in the right direction. He enters his fourth year on the job and has compiled a 49-50 career record, which includes the five years he spent as Houston’s head man. Baylor brings back 14 starters...
Read more about 2011 Baylor Football Predictions 2011 Texas Tech Football Predictions - June 27, 2011Texas Tech has been one of the more underrated programs over the past few decades. They have put together 18 straight winning seasons, making them the only member of the Big 12 with at least 16 straight despite playing in the same division as Oklahoma and Texas. The Red Raiders went 8-5 in Tommy Tuberville’s first year on the job in 2010. It ended with a 45-38 victory over Northwestern in the TicketCity Bowl. The transition from Mike Leach’s former spread system continues as Texas Tech looks...
Read more about 2011 Texas Tech Football Predictions 2011 Kansas State Football Predictions - June 27, 2011Bill Snyder put together the greatest rebuilding job in college football history when he took over a team in 1989 that went 0-21-1 the previous two seasons, combined. He took the Kansas State Wildcats to 11 consecutive bowl games from 1993 through 2003, and even had them as a national title contender in five of those seasons. He decided to step down in 2005, but returned in 2009. Snyder turns 72 in October and is coming off a successful 2010 season. The Wildcats went 7-6 last year and made it to...
Read more about 2011 Kansas State Football Predictions 2011 Missouri Football Predictions - June 23, 2011It was a rough start at Missouri for head coach Gary Pinkel, who suffered through two losing seasons in his first two years on the job. Pinkel has led the Tigers to bowl games in seven of the past eight season since, including a trip to the Insight Bowl last year where they would lose to Iowa 24-27. Missouri still put together a 10-win season, losing only twice in Big 12 play. They upset Oklahoma 36-27 at home for their signature win. The Tigers return 15 starters this season with nine on offense...
Read more about 2011 Missouri Football Predictions 2011 Oklahoma State Football Predictions - June 21, 2011The Oklahoma State Cowboys are coming off of the most successful season in the history of their program. They put together their first-ever 11-win season against just two losses. Their two losses came at home against Nebraska and Oklahoma, but they went unbeaten on the road and also topped Arizona in the Alamo Bowl 36-10. The Cowboys featured one of the most explosive offenses in the country and should be exciting to watch once again in 2011. They have 14 starters coming back, including nine on offense. Mike...
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