Will Georgia turn their program around? This will be UGA’s second year in the 3-4 defense and while losing AJ Green and Justin Houston to the NFL hurts, a top five recruiting class will ease the pain. After much speculation on whether star running back Washaun Ealey would transfer, head coach Mark Richt has lifted his suspension and he is practicing with the team again. This gives Georgia a great 1-2-3 punch at tail back with Ealey, Caleb King and incoming freshman stud Isaiah Crowell(get to know Isaiah). Sophomore quarterback Aaron Murray looked stellar as a freshman throwing 24 touchdowns to just 8 interceptions. He is poised to become the best quarterback in the SEC in the not too distant future. The biggest matchups on the Bulldog’s schedule are Boise State at the Georgia Dome to open up the season followed by a week two contest at home with reigning SEC East champs South Carolina. Georgia as always plays Florida in Jacksonville in late October. The Dawgs do not have to play national title contenders Alabama or LSU this year unless it is in the SEC Championship so a 6-2 showing in the SEC is very realistic. Be on the lookout for Alec Ogletree who is moving to inside linebacker after playing safety in high school and keep an eye on strong safety Bacarri Rambo who will lead the defense this year.
Can Nebraska win the Big 10 in its first year in the conference? At this point all signs point to yes. The Cornhuskers get Ohio State at home in Terrelle Pryor, Boom Herron and DeVier Posey’s first game back from suspensions. After some transfer rumors quarterback Taylor Martinez is still the man and he can only improve after a superb freshman year. Although he was banged up the majority of 2010 he still passed for over 1,600 yards and ran for 965 more. Nebraska immediately sports the best defense in the Big 10 with NFL prospects like cornerback Alfonzo Dennard, linebacker Lavonte David, cornerback Ciante Evans and defensive tackle Jared Crick. They have the deepest and most talented secondary in the country(sorry Bama). The Huskers do not have to play Wisconsin but they do have to pay visits to Penn State who don’t know who their quarterback is yet and Michigan who just don’t have the athletes on the defensive side of the ball to make a run. Expect to see a Nebraska-Ohio State rematch in the Big 10 championship this year unless Wisconsin can defeat the Buckeyes in the Horseshoe in late October.
Can Oklahoma reach the BCS title game? If I had to rank the top three teams right now it would be 1- Alabama, 2- Oregon/LSU winner September 3rd, and 3- Stanford. Oklahoma would be a close fourth with Heisman candidate quarterback Landry Jones and wide out Ryan Broyles. Remember, this year the Big 12 loses its championship game and goes to a round robin nine game conference schedule. The key games for OU are an early season matchup at Florida State, an early October matchup with Texas and at Oklahoma State to end the regular season. Texas A&M is a program on the rise and the Sooners cannot overlook the Aggies. The Sooners would have to run the table because there is no chance a one loss Oklahoma gets a BCS title nod over a one loss SEC team, a one loss PAC 12 team or an undefeated TCU or Boise State who play each other November 12th. There are some questions on the defensive side of the ball but Travis Lewis, Jamell Fleming and Frank Alexander return for their senior seasons to lead what should be one of the best defenses in a very weak Big 12 this year. They can run the table but they are far from a national juggernaut.
