Each week during the off-season we will be doing this feature that is simply called “This Week In College Football”. We will cover the biggest news and stories of the past week and give some opinions and analysis. In addition to covering the weekly happenings we are more than mid-way through our Pre-Season Previews and we currently have 81 FBS previews up on the site. This week we previewed Auburn, Florida, Georgia Tech, Tulsa, Utah, and Virginia. Next week we will start our Top 25 countdown as we preview our 25 best teams starting on Monday. Last week we discussed Ohio State, The Longhorn Network, Russell Shepard, Carlton Thomas, and Marc Tyler. Let’s talk about the biggest stories this week in college football:
NORTH CAROLINA GIVES BUTCH DAVIS THE BELATED BOOT
On Wed of this week North Carolina made the surprise announcement that Head Coach Butch Davis had been fired. The reason it was surprising was not necessarily because of Butch’s track record at UNC, because he has certainly had more than his fair share of NCAA investigations and player suspension since taking over. The surprise was because of when this happened. Practice is just around the corner and there was no silver bullet violation that Davis committed over the past week that caused him to be terminated immediately. Friend of the Blog and former UNC Tar Heel Michael Felder sums up the events over on his In The Bleachers blog and then he talks more about it here. Whether you thought Butch Davis should have been fired or not, the timing of this stinks. If UNC wanted to part was with him they should have done it long ago. It felt like they had hitched themselves to Butch for better or worse but apparently not. The kids you really have to feel for are the incoming freshman that were coming to play for Butch Davis. If this decision had been made earlier they could have possibly found another landing spot or made their own decision to still attend UNC. Maybe that’s why the administration waited so long. The major question now is how does this affect UNC in the short and long term. In the short term, this year went from UNC being a borderline Top 25 team to now being a total wild-card. UNC has named DC Everett Withers as their “interim” Head Coach. Buckle up Everett, it’s going to be a bumpy ride. Who do you think should be the next coach at UNC? Head on over to Coaches By The Numbers and read what they have to say and then let us know who you think would eventually be the right fit.
INDIANA LANDS TOP QB RECRUIT IN THE NATION
No that headline is not a mis-print. And no we don’t mean the Indianapolis Colts. We are talking about the Indiana Hoosiers and their new Head Coach Kevin Wilson. Gunner Kiel, scout.com’s #1 rated QB and a 5-star prospect, announced this week that he was committing to Indiana. Let’s take a look at some of the other offers that Kiel had on the table, according to Scout.com…Alabama, Florida, LSU, Michigan, Notre Dame, Oklahoma, Tennessee, USC, Wisconsin and the list goes on and on. So why did Gunner (which by the way is a great name for a QB) pick Indiana? Maybe it was to be with his brother (who is a sophomore QB for the Hoosiers), maybe it was to be coached by Wilson, maybe it was so that he could blaze his own trail. Regardless of why he made the decision this was a huge get for Wilson and for the Hoosiers.
http://youtube.com/watch?v=dfc9oZRNPfQ
TATE FINALLY FINDS A HOME
The wild off-season ride of Tate Forcier looks like it is finally coming to an end. After leaving Michigan he committed to Miami but then opted out (for what was rumored to be academics). Then Tate had an issue where the police were called in to a situation where others feared for his safety. Then it looked like Tate could be headed out to Hawaii but Hawaii said no thanks. Now it seems like Tate has finally found his spot. Tate Forcier will take his talents to San Jose to play for the San Jose State Spartans. Hopefully Tate can get his career, his academics and his life headed in the right direction and be successful with his new home.
JURON CRINER IS BACK AT ARIZONA
It was reported a couple of week ago that the reiging and defending reception leader of the Pac-12 might not play this season. That would have been a huge blow for the Arizona Wildcats, who have to be considered in contention for the Pac-12 South. Our friends over at Arizona Desert Swarm are definitely excited about his return and have some additional info here. Criner’s return definitely gives the Wildcats a shot at their half of the Pac-12.
QUICK HITS:
– In case you missed it the Trent Richardson, Bama, T-Town Menswear saga might have some legs to it. We talked last week about Bama clearing this through their compliance offense already but it might not go away just yet. If it goes on much longer I’m sure our Bama blogger will come back from his vacation to address this.
– South Carolina’s QB coach, G.A. Mangus, was arrested after police saw him urinating on a street curb. When they approached him he shockingly had a strong odor of alcohol. Insert Stephen Garcia joke here.
– Check in later this week as we will be starting our Top 25 countdown on Monday and we will also be debuting a new weekly SEC column that we will be running throughout the season.
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