A lot of blogs are doing this, so I feel I should jump in. And with the recent nothingness in sports, why not? Which brings me to this: Each day I will try and post major conference breakdowns for all you college fanatics out there. The Big Twelve, SEC and ACC will be broken into two parts, since there’s two different divisions. All others will be covered in whole.

I’ll have a ranking posted next to each team, and for the teams in conferences broken down by divisions, that ranking doesn’t represent the ranking for the division. . . it represents the ranking for the entire conference. To see past entries, click here. On we go.

• Virginia Tech (2): They’ve got the best defense in the ACC behind them — one of the best in the country, for that matter — and they’ve got all sorts of emotional momentum on their side, as well. They have to play Georgia Tech and Clemson on the road, but both games are winnable. It’s hard for me not to pick a team whose D is led by Xavier Adibi and Vince Hall, probably the best linebacking duo in the nation.
• Georgia Tech (3): Call me a Homer, that’s fine. They lost Calvin Johnson, sure, but return 8 starters on a defense that finished in the top 15 last year. Oh, and they lost Reggie Ball. It’s rare that losing a four-year starting QB is a good thing, but, well. . . you’ve seen Reggie Ball.
• Miami (4): Can Kyle Wright finally get it right (no pun intended)? If he can, they’ve got one of the best defenses in the nation. They may need it: New offensive coordinator Pat Nix had Georgia Tech ranked 67th in total offense last year. . . with Calvin Johnson.
• Virginia (8): I remember when people were saying Al Groh was going to bring this team back to prominance. Right now, .500 would be nice.
• North Carolina (11): Butch Davis will turn this program around, but not in year one.
• Duke (12): It’ll be fun watching the biggest rivalry in college basketball face-off to see who finishes dead last.

A lot of blogs are doing this, so I feel I should jump in. And with the recent nothingness in sports, why not? Which brings me to this: Each day I will try and post major conference breakdowns for all you college fanatics out there. The Big Twelve, SEC and ACC will be broken into two parts, since there’s two different divisions. All others will be covered in whole.

I’ll have a ranking posted next to each team, and for the teams in conferences broken down by divisions, that ranking doesn’t represent the ranking for the division. . . it represents the ranking for the entire conference. To see past entries, click here. On we go.

• West Virginia (1): Hard to pick against these guys. The defense is shaky, sure, but with Pat White and Steve Slaton, there won’t be a lead they can’t come back from. Both were hurt last year, which slowed the team, but if healthy there’s no reason they can’t go undefeated. Oh, and an interesting stat, one I only know because I’m a Georgia Tech fan: The Jackets have only lost two times in their five trips to the Gator Bowl. Their first loss came to Miami, who a year later won the National Title. Their second loss? Last year versus West Virginia. We’ll hold that thought.
• Louisville (2): People think there’ll be a fall off with Petrino gone, but Louisville is still loaded from top to bottom. They’ve got the best quarterback in the country, and maybe the best defense in the Big East. Their road block? They’ve got West Virginia in Morgantown, where foes don’t win often.
• Rutgers (3): They’ve got USF and West Virginia at home, and could very well be undefeated before their showdown with Lousiville November 29. They’ve got Ray Rice back, yes, but they also lose 11 starters from last year.
• USF (4): Only because it’s become a popular pick, I’ll go ahead and throw them at the four spot. They’ve apparently got a good defense — I won’t even pretend to have seen more than two of their games, and that’s even a stretch — and though they only have 3 starting seniors on their roster; the catch, however, is the other 15 returning starters from last year’s squad that went 9-4, finishing 4-3 in the Big East.
• Pitt (5): With Dave Wannstedt as your head coach, fifth in a weak Big East is about the best you can expect. The guy had it once, I know, but it just isn’t there anymore.
• Cincinnati (6): They were 4-3 in the Big East last year, and return 16 of their starters. The good news is they play West Virginia and Louisville at home; the bad news is they’ll beat neither, and the teams they might stack up against they play on the road.
• Syracuse (7): They’ve always got basketball, right?
• Connecticut (8): See: Syracuse.

A lot of blogs are doing this, so I feel I should jump in. And with the recent nothingness in sports, why not? When the top story from yesterday was a non-related dog stabbing, football posts become a must. Which brings me to this: Each day I will try and post major conference breakdowns for all you college fanatics out there. The Big Twelve, SEC and ACC will be broken into two parts, since there’s two different divisions. All other conferences will be done in whole. Yesterday was the SEC East, today the SEC West. Monday we’ll pick up again and, I dunno, maybe cover the Pac 10; it’ll have to be a surprise.

I’ll have a ranking posted next to each team, and for the teams in conferences broken down by divisions, that ranking doesn’t represent the ranking for the division. . . it represents the ranking for the entire conference. On we go.

• LSU (2): It’s the team that everyone’s picking to win the SEC, and maybe even challenge for a National Title. They lost LaRon Landry, but their defense is still stacked. Matt Flynn doesn’t have Russell’s arm, but he may be more accurate, and with weapons like Early Doucet to throw to, don’t look for Flynn to have too difficult of a time adjusting to being the starter. LSU’s biggest problem: Les Miles. Good coach, but probably not the guy you expect to go unbeaten.
• Auburn (3): Their two losses came last year at home, both against opponents they were supposed to beat (first against Arkansas, then Georgia). It was hard for Auburn fans to swallow who, until October 7, thought they might have a legitimate shot at a national title (or at least a legitimate shot at Tommy Tubberville complaining about the BCS again). Brandon Cox won’t blow anyone’s mind, but he will complete 60% of his passes, and 60% of those may be to stud wideout Rod Smith. Ben Tate’s a guy most don’t know of, but he’s the next in a long line of great running backs to come out of Auburn (Cadillac, Ronnie, Kenny, now Ben). Biggest issue this team has? Florida, Georgia, LSU and Arkansas all on the road.
• Arkansas (5): So long as they have Darren McFadden playing quarterback, running back, wide receiver and linebacker, this team should be just fine. So long as their fan base is crazy and their coach has no control, this team could hit a few road blocks along the way.
• Alabama (9): Don’t look for ‘Bama to return to grace just yet. Nick Saban’s in, sure, but he doesn’t have a whole ton of talent to work with. John Parker Wilson is pretty solid at quarterback, but that’s about it. With an already tough SEC schedule — they play the entire West, and Tennessee, of course — and with a road game to FSU, it could be a long first year for newbie Nick.
• Mississippi State (10): Croom is bound to turn things around there sooner than later, right? Right?
• Ole Miss(11): They were bad last year with Pat Willis. They’ve got a decently young crop of players, but this team’s still a year away from competing in the SEC.

A lot of blogs are doing this, so I feel I should jump in. And with the recent nothingness in sports, why not? When the top story from yesterday was a non-related dog stabbing, football posts become a must. Which brings me to this: Each day I will try and post major conference breakdowns for all you college fanatics out there. The Big Twelve, SEC and ACC will be broken into two parts, since there’s two different divisions. All other conferences will be done in whole. Today we’ll focus on the SEC East, tomorrow the SEC East. Monday we’ll pick up again and, I dunno, maybe cover the Pac 10; it’ll have to be a surprise.

I’ll have a ranking posted next to each team, and for the teams in conferences broken down by divisions, that ranking doesn’t represent the ranking for the division. . . it represents the ranking for the entire conference. On we go.

• Florida (1): They’ll be the best team in the SEC this year, and anybody from Baton Rouge who wants to argue, well, all I have to say is this: Les Miles. Urban Meyer has done nothing but great things since his arrival in Florida, and even if he’s paying players — there’s a lot of grumbling that Urban has to be doing something wrong — he’s still getting them. The defense loses a lot, but it’s hard for me to imagine that the offense is going to drop off with Tim Tebow and an older Percy Harvin. He’s smaller than Reggie Bush, sure, but also might be faster.
• Tennessee (4): The East used to dominate the SEC, but the tides have kind of turned. The Vols pretty much lost everything resembling a starting wide receiver, but David Cutcliffe has a knack for making decent players great; Robert Meachem, who had done nothing in two years before Cutcliffe, was nearly an All-American last year. Erik Ainge is a polished four-year starter, and the defense should be solid enough to squeak out some wins. With their only tough road games coming at Florida and at Alabama (they play at Cal, but that’s out of conference and, uh, also the Pac 10. . . you know, not so difficult), the schedule favors them. They play at Kentucky to fiinish the year off, which could be a harder game than normally expected.
• UGA (6): Yes, the Bulldogs will finish sixth overall in the SEC. Their defense will more than likely be in shambles, but being Georgia, and constantly pissing me off (I’m a Tech fan, remember?), they’ll manage to win enough close games to make me go crazy. Matthew Stafford will progress as a sophomore, and Kregg Lumpkin will handle the load at running back. After a 4-4 season last year in the SEC, Mark Richt could be under some scrutnity midway through the season.
• Kentucky (7): Hard to imagine that Kentucky will be a team to once again be wary of. The last time people gave a damn about the Wildcats? Well, it was the glory years of Tim Couch. The reason people won’t want to face them this year? Well, it’s pretty simple: Andre’ Woodson. He’s Michael Vick without the animal rage. With Florida, LSU, and Tennessee at home, you can pretty much count on one of them being upset.
• South Carolina (8): You have to root for The Ol’ Ball Coach, but, to be honest, his team just isn’t that good. He’s lost Ko Simpson and Sidney Rice the last couple of years, and they were two of the very few bright spots on this South Carolina team. Blake Mitchell gets in fights and doesn’t show up to practice, and their schedule is nothing to sneeze at: At Georgia, at LSU, at Arkansas, at Tennessee, and at North Carolina (yeah, the last one doesn’t seem too difficult, but people are really building up Butch Davis).
• Vanderbilt: The players here can at least say they got a good education. And a few of ‘em played with Jay Cutler. Hey, when you play for Vandy, you look for any positives you can find.