Revisiting my bold predictions to start the year.....

I started the year with 20 Bold predictions for the college football season. It would only be fair to see if I did accurately predict anything right that went on during this wild and unpredictable season. Here it is, a meager nine out of 20 right. At least I tried....

1. A major program will go up in flames before the end of the season-Yep, got that one right. Not how I really had it pictured. I assumed another major recruiting violation, or players selling merchandise would be the case all over again. This one was much different. The institution that was Penn State football took a major blow, to say the least. This scandal trumps all. Penn State's sexual abuse scandal not only is one of the biggest stories college football has seen, but it has taken a life on its own in the national spotlight.  It was one of those, "Where were you type moments?"  From the releasing of the horrific grand jury report to the candlelight vigils and riots and the firing of the most successful coaches in the sport's history. It was unpredictable and very surreal.


2. Boise State will go undefeated and play in a BCS game- Well missed this one. Boise State went 12-1 after their relatively easy win over Arizona State. Had the Broncos remained in the WAC rather than joining the Mountain West, this may have come true, but Boise went down to the hands of TCU 36-35 back on November 12. The Broncos remained a presence in the Top 10 and may have actually been snubbed by the BCS for the likes of Virginia Tech and Michigan.

3. The Big 12 will start to crumble further-Well right again. The Big 12 did lose Texas A&M as predicted, but Missouri followed suit and joined the SEC. The Big 12 looked weak with 8 teams and the big boys, Texas and Oklahoma looking at the Pac 12. The Longhorn network stirred up quite a commotion, but the powers settled their differences and got Big East defectors TCU and West Virginia to keep the league stable with ten teams.

4. Florida State is back, and will be for a long time- Well they may be back for a long time, but the trendy National Champion pick did not come through this season.  The Seminoles lost a tough early season heavyweight bout with Oklahoma, and followed it up with loses to Clemson and Wake Forest in the coming weeks. The Noles finished with a respectable, yet disappointing 9-4 record.


5. Nebraska will win the Big 10- Well I thought the Big Ten transition would go a little bit better for the Bo Pelini's squad. The Huskers lost two lobsided games to mainstay Big Ten powers, Wisconsin and Michigan. They had their chances up until the final weeks, but Wisconsin and Michigan State ultimately ended up playing for the Big Ten Title.

6. Texas A&M will be overrated- Well I hit the nail on the head with this one. The Aggies were a trendy pick to win the Big 12 and play in the BCS, but I saw right through it.  They weren't too far off as five of those losses came by less than a touchdown margin.  Still the Aggies had a preseason Top 10 ranking, good teams win close games.


7. Arizona State will win the Pac-12 South- Wrong again.  The Pac 12 South was going to be a toss up with USC being suspended from post season play this year. The Trojans were the true winners, but they were not able to participate in a rematch with North winner, Oregon.  UCLA ended up winning with a 6-6 record. The Sun Devils had the easiest road but folded down the stretch losing four straight games after their 6-2 start.

8. Notre Dame will win 10 games-The Irish put the pressure on themselves early by losing the first two games of the season. The Michigan game was a classic, but a game they never should have lost. They lost two expected games with USC and Stanford, but Notre Dame lost to an inferior South Florida team to start the season. The problems with Notre Dame were simple, they turned the ball over in the red zone way too much. Those mistakes proved to be too costly as they finished with an average 8-5 record.

9. A Running Back will win the Heisman-Wrong again, but it was not because a Running Back wasn't deserving. Montee Ball had the numbers with 32 rushing touchdowns. LaMichael James missed a few games that hurt his cause, and Trent Richardson had a great year, but nothing that warranted the Heisman trophy over Robert Griffin III.

10. Oklahoma-Oklahoma State will be the game of the year-The Sooners lost some curious games to Texas Tech and Baylor that put them out of the championship conversation thus causing the game to lose some luster. Oklahoma State's potent offense had them in the thick of the championship race through 10 games, but they got caught looking ahead and lost to a bad Iowa State team the week prior to Bedlam.  The game had the makings at the beginning of the season, but it turned into an easy OK State slaughter 44-10.

11. Ohio State will lose 4 games-Well not only did the Buckeyes lose 4 games, they ended up losing six. It was a very rare non winning season in Columbus. Everybody expected the team to struggle without Jim Tressel and Terrelle Pryor, but the school really had a rough go at it.  Braxton Miller emerged as a face for the program, but interim coach Luke Fickell had an uphill battle all season long.  Don't expect this to turn into a downward spiral, you might have heard the hired a really good former SEC coach.

12. Matt Barkley will emerge as the NFL's top Quarterback prospect- Well in the future, he very well could. Still after this season Andrew Luck remained the top target that has NFL executives salivating.  Matt Barkley is no slouch and definitely closed the gap. He unexpectedly decided to stay with USC for his senior season. That choice cost former USC quarterback, Matt Leinart a lot of money, and maybe his whole career. I think Barkley is different. He seems poised to be next year's prized draft pick.

13. Michigan will turn the corner- Well after three dismal seasons under Rich Rodriguez, the Wolverines ended the unhappy marriage with Rich Rod and brought in a "Michigan Man."  The move paid huge dividends for the storied program. The Wolverines won 10 games and will be playing in the Sugar Bowl against Virginia Tech on January 3. The impatient and demanding fan base should be pleased for a while, but Brady Hoke better keep it up.

14. Texas will remain average-It amazing to me that Texas ever has down years. They are the most prominent program in the biggest football state in all the land. I guess it can happen to anyone. The Longhorns at least made a Bowl this season, but 8-5 is unacceptable for Texas. The fan base may start pushing for Mack Brown to leave sooner rather than later.

15. Case Keenum will be invited to New York for the Heisman ceremony- Well had the Cougars won the Conference USA championship game and remained undefeated he likely would have been in New York. Case completed 70% of his passes, amassed over 5,000 yards, and threw 45 touchdowns. Those are certainly Heisman like numbers. The fact that he played for a Houston team with a weak schedule certainly hurt his cause.

16. The National Champion will not be out of the SEC- I got this one wrong big time. Not only is there one SEC team in the championship, both teams are from the league. LSU played a demanding schedule and survived the long haul with a 13-0 record. Alabama fell victims to the Bayou Bengals, but the BCS system felt they would be the best match for LSU. The rematch is on, and it will be epic. The 9-6 game will go down in history as one of the best college games in history, and most are expecting the same type of dual next week.

17.  Georgia will win the SEC East- Georgia did just that. The Dawgs started slow and the Mark Richt rumors started flying all over the place The team settled down from an 0-2 start and reeled off 10 straight and ultimately lost to the LSU machine in Atlanta. Good things are coming for Georgia,as they definitely will be in the title hunt next season.

18. SMU will be on the rise- June Jones has things pointed in the right direction and indirectly the Mustangs are definitely on the rise. The Big East invite will certainly help the program and will be SMU's first taste of playing in a big conference since the death penalty hit Dallas in the 80's.  The team did not have a great season, but 7-5 is better than the past two decades. They have a bowl game with Pitt on January 7 to try to reach the eight win plateau.

19. Army will be in a bowl game again- Army took a step backwards and did not reach a consecutive bowl game. The Cadets managed a big upset over Northwestern, but nothing else really got going. The Black Knights always seemingly are the weakest of the three service academies and this year proved no different. They played Navy tough, and closed the gap a bit, but they still need a win over the Midshipmen soon. They have not defeated their arch rivals since 2001.

20. Paterno will retire after the season- Well this one was going to be right I believe.  Joe's days of good health and being able to stay with the current game were numbered. The scandal took care of it before any talk of retirement could have happened. Joe Pa's cancer diagnosis may have been his calling to step down, but who knows? Either way this was his last season.