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| Wednesday, December 4 Toledo out to save more than the BCS By Bruce Feldman ESPN The Magazine |
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The BCS is in trouble, and it's steam rolling its way towards a giant manhole. But it can be saved (OK, it can be saved to a certain extent) on Saturday, and the guy waiting to come to the rescue is Bob Toledo. The embattled UCLA coach hopes to lead his Bruins over Pac-10 front runner Washington State. Of course, if you ask some people, Toledo could be saving something else in the process: his job.
To be fair, Toledo's team has been rocked by injuries this season. Both his QBs are true freshmen and his star tailback, Tyler Ebell, is a redshirt freshman. The future looks promising, but Toledo might not be around to see it if they lose Saturday. Word in coaching circles is Toledo must avoid another sour finish to a season (Compounding a blowout loss to USC would make it the fifth consecutive season where the Bruins have faded.) The buzz is that UCLA likes Oklahoma assistant Mike Stoops, especially having a guy with a strong defensive background at a place where stopping people has been a huge problem. But all this could be washed away with a big win. Can the Bruins pull the upset? Yes, especially if Jason Gesser's bum ankle keeps him out of action. His understudy Matt Kegel, a former prep triple jump champ, does have starting experience. Two years ago, he led Wazzu to a road win over USC. One rival coach whose team faced the Cougars likes the 6-foot-5, 235-pound junior's skills, but isn't sold on his quarterbacking savvy. "He looks the part, can really spin it and is surprisingly athletic, but something's missing," says the coach. "Gesser's half his size and might not even has as much speed, but he has a quicker release, moves well in the pocket and has a presence. This kid seems lost. It's like they're complete opposites." By the way, Kegel, who is Ryan Leaf's cousin, struggled big-time in the Apple Cup. He was unable to pilot Wazzu to a first down in five possessions and threw the interception that led to the U-Dub's FG that sent the game into OT. The bottom line: Gesser plays and Wazzu runs almost everything out of the shotgun. Then Price -- one of the game's most unique personalities -- bangs the drums for his Heisman candidate doing "a Leftwich" carrying his team to the Rose Bowl.
Random Notes The 6-2, 242-pound former minor league OF got overshadowed a little in the JC ranks by Coffeyville's Brandon Jacobs (if you know anything about Jacobs you'd know why), but he has NFL tools. In fact, after last season, when ran for almost 1,300 yards on just 148 carries, he told ESPN The Magazine he was considering jumping straight to the NFL. (His childhood buddy Darrell Jackson, a standout WR with the Seahawks was encouraging him.) But Harris realizes he could still use some polish -- coaches say he often tries to make every run an 80-yard TD run and sometimes doesn't get what the plays are blocked for. Mountaineer RB coach Calvin McGee, who has known Harris since he was 14, has assured the big back that he can be The Man in Morgantown.
"He had good strength and great feet," says Haye of the 6-4, 306-pound senior. "He had the best feet of anyone I've ever faced. And he was pretty nasty too. But he never said anything. He just went right to the whistle."
Hoskins, who ran a 22.6 200 meters two years ago, could end up at TCU after a season playing for his dad Ken, dominating Texas six-man. He caught 26 passes for 590 yards and 12 TDs, while also returning 11 kicks (six punts, five kickoffs) for touchdowns -- despite Whitharral mercy-ruling almost everyone by halftime. (In six-man, which is kind of like Arena football except everyone is eligible and the QB can't run, games end when one team gets up by at least 45 by halftime.) "We've timed him at 4.52 and with his body frame, I could see him being an inside receiver or even a tight end," says his dad. Brandon was on his way to leading Whitharral to its second straight Texas state title, but dislocated his elbow on the opening kickoff and his team lost without him. The last big-time six-man product was DeWayne Miles, a RB who was in Vikings camp last year. Miles is a product of W. Texas State.
LJ had over 2,000 yards, is very versatile and probably will be the first Lion tailback since Curt Warner to make a splash in the League. But he shouldn't win the Doak Walker, much less the Heisman. He played three teams that had run defenses in the top 50 (fifty!) and he averaged 71 yards per and barely four yards a carry. Those were also the three games PSU lost. The other defenses he played against were ranked 53rd (UCF for 92 yds); 51st (Nebraska for 123); 81st (La. Tech for 147); 55th (Wisconsin for 111); 117th (Northwestern for 257); 95th (Illinois for 279); 107th (UVa for 188); 113th (Indiana for 327) and 100th (Michigan State for 279). Willis McGahee from Miami, meanwhile played five top 50 run defenses and averaged 131 rushing yards (5.1 ypc) against those teams. Virginia Tech, by the way, is 12th in the nation in run defense.
Boxill blew out his knee last spring, while Glass, who played for Rutgers RB coach Darren Rizz when both were at UNH, has to sit out for transfer rules. There is also a chance that former JC all-American Ron Green, another 320-pounder, could qualify and be headed to Rutgers. Butler County linemen Adam Gourley, an agile 6-5, 285-pounder with a huge nasty streak, also could be Rutgers-bound.
Bruce Feldman covers college football for ESPN The Magazine. E-mail him at bruce.feldman@espnmag.com. |
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