Reader Questions Part 2

Reader Questions (Part 2)

 

    Earlier this week I answered a few questions from my readers. I am back for more. If you have a question/comment, post them to our Facebook page or send to Jeremy.cf2d@yahoo.com

 

    Let's get it going...........

 

 

 

Rodney in Tennessee writes: Okay, I get that UT may struggle again this season, but with recruiting be so good right now and the hype of a new coach, isn't there a chance we get back to a bowl game? I mean this team still has some solid players on it. Your thoughts?

 

     I knew I would get a question like this eventually..... Look, recruiting for next season has ZERO impact on the current season, in my opinion anyway. Some might argue that players play harder when they see guys coming in that could take over their position. But none of these commitments are 100% committed. Most of them are verbal commitments. We can talk recruiting again when national signing day comes around....oh and I should mention FSU recently took over the #1 spot in recruiting rankings.... Anyways.... UT is going have to play hard every single game in order to have a chance at a bowl game. Adjusting to a new coach isn't easy either. Most of these players have now played for 3 or 4 different position coaches. That's not an easy thing to do each off season. I won't count them out of a bowl game yet, but it will be a difficult road. Thanks for reading and your question, Rodney.

 

 

     Derek Crawford in Tennessee writes: Here's a question: Do you see Vandy maintaining or improving on their 8-4 record from 2012?

 

      Mmmmm, that is a good question. We all have to wonder when/if Vandy will go back to being Vandy, right? It's a scary schedule this season. So much rides on that first game against Ole Miss, too. Coach Franklin isn't showing any signs of backing down. He has just as much energy heading into this season as any season prior to this one. Is it a good 'poker face'? or does he have a legit reason to be excited? At this point, I wouldn't want to play poker with him...... This is still a dangerous Vanderbilt team. But are they a danger to themselves or to other teams......or both? The only games I can feel comfortable about saying Vandy wins are games against Austin Peay, Massachusetts, UAB, and Wake Forest. Notice I didn't throw Kentucky in that mix. Kentucky will be a 'wild card'. Outside of those games, the schedule is BRUTAL for a team like Vanderbilt. Georgia, South Carolina, Florida, and Texas A&M.....that just doesn't help them get back to a bowl game. However, if they get a win in week 1 and they win all the games they should win after that, I'd say a 7-6 or 8-5 type season could be in the mix. I don't see them finishing better than last season. Thanks for the question Derek.

 

   This next question came through email with no name....so I hope your are reading 'Mr. No Name.

 

   I am a fan of a couple teams because I have family that attended each school. I like Michigan and Wisconsin, and I know it's tough because they are in same conference, but my question is more of a conference question anyway. Which conference do you think will have the most success once the play-offs starts in 2014?

 

     See, this is why you should have left your name with the question...... It's an outside the box type question. I think most fans in the area I am in would scream SEC to that question, however, I could see the SEC's greatest strength also being its greatest weakness. Interesting hmmm? Think about it, the SEC has some of the greatest teams in the country, but if they beat up on each other and there is a one loss SEC team and the runner up has two losses where does that leave the runner up in the mix for the play-offs? If there are three other teams from other conferences all with one loss then I believe all three of those teams will get in before that two loss SEC team. So, while it helps in the strength of schedule to play in the SEC, it also could hurt when you have two or three other teams from other conferences that finish the season with one loss or possibly undefeated.... One of the reasons the play-off was thought up was because of the BAMA vs LSU title game a couple years ago. First off, it was a snoozer of a game, not to say last year vs Notre Dame was any better.... The point of this system was to get the best teams from 4 (FOUR) conferences to square off. Is that to say that there won't be a season where there are two from the same conference? No, of course there will be one of those seasons every now again. Fans want to see the best of the PAC-12, BigTen, ACC, SEC, and Big12 square off. Notice there are 5 conferences, but the point is to give each conference shot at going head-to-head with the best of another for the title game.

   To say that any one conference will benefit more than others is a little hard to believe. Now, if you are asking if there will be a couple conferences that benefit more than others, then yes that's an easy answer. The SEC, BigTen, ACC, Big12, and the PAC-12 have all placed themselves in a position to really benefit from this. Everyone else is on the outside looking in at this point.

 

 

    Very good questions this week.... Thank you very much, everyone. If you have questions or comments..... please feel free to send them in or post to our Facebook page. Send to Jeremy.cf2d@yahoo.com . Check back next week as I continue my preseason top 15 countdown with #8.