Football '09: What do you look for to find conference favorites?

What do you look for to determine a quality team first?

• A quality, returning quarterback?
• Strength and depth in the O-Line?
• The Front 7 on defense?
• Returning letter winners?
• Returning starters?
• Last year's turnover margin?
• A Heisman Trophy or award candidate?
• The team's head coach

Some observations we often make:

1. Like Texas in '08, a quality O-Line? The same is true in '02 for Iowa. New skill position starters are far better at RB, WR, than across the O-Line. QB is always a key position. A strong O-Line can often help the development of a new QB.
2. Defensively, how does the Front 7 look, since a strong Front 7 often overcomes youth in the the secondary? Looking at the better teams in the SEC, Big Ten and Pac Ten ... one remembers often: Defense wins championships!
3. You can't forget to factor in Special Teams as an X-Factor. Virgina Tech has certainly been strong over the years under coach Frank Beamer. Special teams are often a bread and butter part to the Hokies success. Coach Kirk Ferentz's Iowa squads from '02 to '04 were fueled by strong special teams play, resulting in three straight finishes at #8 in the final college football polls.

So, who do you like as conference favorites in the various conferences in '09?

• ACC - Virgina Tech, North Carolina; the ACC Coastal seems a little more predictable than the ACC Atlantic? Is Coach Tom O'Brien in year 3 ready to have NC State competing for a division title, after leaving fellow ACC Atlantic team, Boston College?
• Big 12 - Texas looks solid, but is Oklahoma ready to take the Red River Rivalry back? Oklahoma State will continue to get better? The Big 12 South looks clearly better than the Big 12 North, after the North made some inroads over the past two seasons?
• Big East - In a fair world, would the Big East be a BCS conference, when you look at the upside of the Mountain West Conference lately? Conference seems to be a wide open race for '09? Is there really a good favorite here?
• Big Ten - With Iowa's O-Line, D-Line and LBs, even the DBs, could this year be special for the Hawkeyes? Iowa needs to get off to fast start in Big Ten and OOC if they want to be in the picture. Ohio State will continue to look to re-load, especially with a starting QB returning. Penn State is pretty good too, but do they really have the capability to re-load, as Ohio State does? If IU wasn't so questionable, wouldn't Minnesota be a strong candidate to return to #11? How improved overall will the Big Ten be?
• C-USA - East Carolina had a good start in OOC season last year and appears to be strong in the O-Line and Front 7 on defense compared to their conference rivals. The C-USA East looks a little like the ACC Coastal, where EC and Southern Miss look good? In the C-USA West: Is Houston and Tulsa better in '09? What's happening at UTEP?
• MAC - Can Buffalo coach Turner Gill take his team again up the MAC East ladder to the conference title game again? Central Michigan and Western Michigan will fight for the bid as best directional school in the State of Michigan and the MAC West division.
• MWC - Should they get an automatic BCS bid? It appears the Rose Bowl is taking note of the MWC as an asterisk? If Rose Bowl can't get the Pac Ten champ, then they will take the MWC champ? Did we read that news right? Utah #1 for '09 in the MWC? TCU has been pretty consistent this decade.
• Pac-10 - Does anyone challenge USC in the Pac Ten? We love the 9-game conference slate that the Pac-10 plays. Is Arizona a bowl team in '09?
• SEC - Much has been mentioned of Florida's schedule, but overall this team and Urban Meyer bring a lot to table personnel wise. Can Georgia rebound? The SEC was a little weaker in '09 after Florida and Alabama last year. Is Ole Miss really worthy of all the hype. Can LSU be held down very long?
• Sun Belt - Arkansas State beat Texas A&M last year. Are they ready to compete for a Sun Belt title? Troy has some parts returning from '08. Florida Atlantic slipped last year, which wasn't a surprise. Who will be bit in the major conferences by a Sun Belt team in '09? UL Monroe beat Alabama in '07.
• WAC - Boise State is often the front runner, since Fresno State and Hawaii have dipped recently. Nevada and LA Tech look to fall into #2 and #3 in '09.

It's time to start to compile information and discuss many of the other teams that make up the 120 FBS teams in Division I College Football for '09.

peace