The new reality for sports fandom is full of fantasy. Fantasy sports, that is. No longer satisfied with rooting for a team, fans are now growing allegiances to individual players and their statistics as the world of fantasy sports continues to grow. As fantasy sports began with the pros, it was only a matter of time before college sports entered the world. We look at the history and future of fantasy college football.
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It’s All About Stamina At LSU Tailgates
LSU super fan Marvin Dugas, a.k.a. “Big Ragoo,” talks about surviving 12-hour tailgates, going on the road to watch the Tigers, the key ingredient in Cajun food (beer) and his thoughts on Nick Saban now that he’s winning national championships for the enemy (run time is 3:05).
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Inside Larry Coker’s Crazy Last Decade
The last 10 years have been a wild ride for Larry Coker. He was on top of the college football world in just his first season as a head coach at “The U” in 2001. But as Coker discovered, when you begin at the very top, the only other place to go is down. As the former Miami coach restarts his career at a brand new program, we look at how he went to the top of college football at the beginning of the decade to an FCS start-up program by the end of it.
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Talking With The Legendary Mr. Two-Bits
Florida’s George Edmondson has been known at The Swamp as Mr. Two-Bits for over 60 years, recently retiring after the 2008 season. Edmondson talks about Steve Spurrier personally asking him to come back in 1998 and what’s it’s like to be so beloved at UF (run time is 4:03; transcript below the jump – Editor’s Note: podcast was edited to condense).
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The Empowerment Of College Football Fans
As the popularity of college football has grown, so has the public criticism of college coaches whose tenures are judged by the week rather than by the season. Fans have become more empowered and bolder than ever when it comes to attempting to run a head coach out of town. We look at the evolution of the fans’ empowerment over the last decade and what great lengths fans go to show their discontent. Watch your back, Rich Rod.
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College Football: No Game For Old Men
College football is a young man’s game, but from time to time we see players who have a few more years of life experience under their belts before taking the field. We hate to call guys old that are in their mid-20s old (which might make some of you feel even better about your age), but the following players are literally men amongst boys. And like Chris Weinke before them, they could become household names by the end of the season.
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Introducing FBS’ New Black Head Coaches
Six FBS schools hired African-American coaches this offseason. That nearly doubles the number of black coaches in the 120-team FBS, bringing the total number to 13. With such a large influx of black coaches coming into the FBS level this season, this could be a watershed moment for young black coaches if a large majority of them are successful. We examine who these guys are and their prospects in Year One.
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The Legacy Of Cretin-Derham Hall Football
Seantrel Henderson, the nation’s top recruit according to some scouting services, is just the latest in a long line of elite football players to come out of Cretin-Derham Hall High School, a private high school in St. Paul, MN. So, what is this high school and who exactly has come out of its hallowed halls? We take a look at arguably the best high school football factory in the Midwest and the players that have helped define it.
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Mark Ingram’s Hurdles To Another Heisman
As we’ve already pointed out, a major storyline in 2010 will be “Can Mark Ingram repeat as a Heisman winner?” It’s been 35 years since Ohio State’s Archie Griffin became the only person to pull off the feat. And while Ingram certainly has the talent to do the same, we see three potential obstacles standing in his way, as evidenced by the four players who failed to repeat as Heisman winners in the last decade. We examine.
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The Legacy Of Jack “The Assassin” Tatum
Ohio State’s Jack Tatum, nicknamed “The Assassin” for his concussion-inducing tackles, died yesterday at the age of 61. Wrongly or not, to this day Tatum is mainly just remembered for just one play – the hit he put on Darryl Stingley in a 1978 NFL preseason game that paralyzed the wide receiver. That moment changed the lives of both men forever and it would define Tatum the rest of his life.
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Welcome To “Pass Rush U” At Florida
Penn State is “Linebacker U,” Miami is “Quarterback U” and USC is “Tailback U.” But for the last two decades, “Pass Rush U” has been located in Gainesville. Since 1990, there have been eight different pass rushers that have terrorized the SEC and a ninth one, freshman Ronald Powell, who could continue Florida’s pass rush dominance. We look back at each member of this elite fraternity.
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Despite Its Doubters, Triple Option Still Puzzling Defenses 40 Years After Inception
When you hear “triple option” you think of grainy newsreel footage, tear away jerseys and bare mid-drifts. In other words, you think of football from a bygone era. But Air Force, Navy and Georgia Tech are bringing back the more traditional form of the triple option and some of the country’s best programs are now using it their own variations of it, creating a triple option revival. Today we look at the history of the formation.
