Write On Sports LLC - "Surprises & Dissapointments of 2006" by Tom Zuck

Surprises & Dissapointments of 2006

2006-12-14 12:49:21 | By: Tom Zuck

There is just a week to go before one of the best "weeks" of the year; Bowl Week. It's a time for football junkies to get their last fix of college football before it goes away, until Spring Ball, of course.

It's also a week for conferences to justify the bragging by its fans and a week where you will find people rooting for teams that, during the season, are on the receiving end of irrational hatred. It's a beautiful time.

But, before Bowl Week begins, I'd like to spend the time to consider the biggest surprises and disappointments from the 2006 season.

Surprises

Wake Forest: Of course the Demon Deacons deserve this lofty status. NOBODY picked Wake Forest to have the type of season that it did. If at first you thought the team would do as well as it did, chances are you changed your mind after the offense lost the starting QB and running back. All in all it was a great job by the players and the coaches.

Rutgers: In 2005 the Scarlet Knights were very close to some nice victories, but they just couldn't hang on. The most glaring example of that was a loss at Illinois (other close losses in 2005 were to WVU and South Florida). This year Coach Greg Schiano righted the ship, but still the loss to Cincinnati will sting for a while. For so many years Rutgers has been one of the jokes of college football. No more. And with Schiano turning down the possibility of coaching elsewhere and remaining in New Jersey, there is a very good chance that this team will become a a power. Rutgers can now go head to head with Penn State, Maryland and Boston College for the top players in New Jersey.

Wisconsin: A new head coach and the loss of the top offensive players from last year's squad led many to believe this would be a growing year for the Badgers. Thanks to freshman running back P.J. Hill and a terrific defense, the Badgers are ranked in the top-10. Not too bad for Coach Bret Bielema. Its a shame that Wisconsin did not play Ohio State. The Badgers played, and lost, to Michigan. It would have been nice to see what they could do against the Buckeyes.

Virginia Tech's defense: For the past few years it appeared that the Virginia Tech program was out of control. Undisciplined play, and personal fouls, led the Hokies to slip in two huge games against Miami and worse yet to Florida State in the ACC Championship. The behavior of the team in the bowl game against Louisville was embarrassing and resembled Miami under Dennis Erickson more than one of Frank Beamer's clubs. Thankfully for the Hokies, they turned things around after the Boston College loss. The defense allowed just 221 yards and less than 10 points per game this year.

Young Runners: Not be confused with "Rum Runners". Five of the top-six backs in the country are underclassmen. That is an amazing thing when you consider how some coaches don't get their youngsters on the field (Pitt). Steve Slaton, WVU (soph.), Ray Rice, Rutgers (soph.), Ian Johnson, Boise State (soph.), Darren McFadden, Arkansas (soph.) and P.J. Hill, Wisconsin (fr.) were two through six behind senior Garrett Wolfe. Think about that for a moment.

Disappointments

There are so many to choose from...

First, although not necessarily a disappointment, and maybe more of a surprise, Boston College coach Tom O'Brian left the Eagles to coach at North Carolina State. It is an odd thing when a coach moves from one team to another in the same conference. The road trips to Boston could be quite an ordeal for the Wolfpack in the coming years.

Pitt: From a Pittsburgh point of view the Panthers were a big disappointment. Yes there were some glaring weaknesses and the team was very young, but there are a lot of teams that have to overcome those things each year. For me, the biggest disappointment for this team was the inability, or unwillingness, to get the playmakers on the field. I point to how Houston Nutt uses Darren McFadden. Yes, McFadden is a very, very special player, but he was put into situations to make a difference. AND, his offensive coordinator, Gus Malzahn, was a high school coach last year. SO experience is not a factor. It's about creativity.

Auburn's Running: Or lack of running. Yes, Kenny Irons was banged up this season but for some reason Coach Tommy Tuberville and Al Borges were content to lean on erratic quarterback Brandon Cox instead of highly recruited backup runners. The Tigers rushed for just 155 yards per game -- which is not enough to win in the SEC. Brad Lester and Ben Tate should have carried the ball more.

Penn State's Offense: I do not like Penn State. Never have and never will. But, I do normally enjoy watching them play. Except for this year. This year's offense, in the hands of junior QB Anthony Morelli, was anemic. 200 yards passing a game and just 11 touchdown passes (versus nine interceptions) just isn't going to get the job done. For years now the word from Penn State was that they would get the ball to their speed guys on the outside. This year it didn't happen. Maybe a lot of it is due to a sub par offensive line and lack of a dominant rushing attack. Maybe Morelli is not the quarterback people expected. Offensive coaches Galen Hall and Jay Paterno must do a MUCH better job next season. Spring Ball should be interesting, especially if (or when) a quarterback battle emerges.

Georgia's Indecision: That has just as much as anything to explain what happened to the Bulldogs this season. The quarterback situation was never decided until the season was already lost. Third generation Bulldog Joe T III is a great story but he probably was not the best choice as their starter to start the season. For the good of the program it would have been better to use freshman Matt Stafford right from the beginning. The running attack never came around and that could explain why Coach Mark Richt has EIGHT verbal commitments from offensive linemen for February's recruiting class. But the offensive woes don't explain the defensive meltdowns against Vandy and Kentucky.

Oregon's Fade: After last season's 10-2 finish much more should have happened this season. Even if you take away the God-awful uniforms, the late season swoon was still painful. The Ducks lost four of the final six games and the two victories were against Portland State and Washington.

Texas: Three losses would be great at most schools. Not Texas, especially after last year. How cool would it have been if Vince Young had stayed for one more season? I stand firm in my belief that Young, not Reggie Bush, should have won the Heisman last year. And, how awesome would the Ohio State-Texas game have been this year? Colt McCoy will be a very good quarterback but three losses, especially when one is to Texas A&M, is still too many for the Longhorns.

Alabama: This one is for ALL of Alabama. Mike Shula was a loyal man and he was not treated correctly. YES, the Alabama offense was terrible and the defense lacked its usual punch. But the Crimson Tide has had SEVEN coaches since Coach Bryant retired. Athletic Director Mal Moore is one of Bryant's boys and he should know better than to treat a former player that way. Also, Alabama's willingness to throw mounds of money at Rich Rodriguez, and if reports are correct, Nick Saban, shows that they are getting a bit desperate. Try a young guy with a burning desire and let him coach.

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