Watch Them or Toss Them 2

Here's the second round of teams that are either rising up or simply over hyped.











South Carolina State- Watch Them

This team is looking to make a return to the playoffs and shake up post season play. They have the desire, the players, and the discipline to make it happen. Their regular season schedule looks more like bakery menu (cupcakes all around) than a grueling test, so they should breeze through it and enter the playoffs fresh and confident. If they can draw a soft first round game instead of a top dog like they have previously, they have a shot at a playoff run.












Georgia State- Toss Them

Georgia State is starting up football this year and has grand ambitions of becoming a state power on level with UGA. To achieve this end, they have hired Bill Curry, a man with a lifetime record of 83-105-4 and have replaced their hideous logo with a slightly less childish one. A sloppy season against many weak opponents might serve as a wake up call to over eager fans. State will be playing teams like Shorter and Lambuth, schools most people probably didn't even know had teams. They will face Savannah State, one of the most abysmal schools in college football, in a game that I hereby dub "The Futility Bowl." State fans will probably laud their team's accomplishments over these tomato cans, but the game against Jacksonville State might snap them out of delirium. If that doesn't work, a season ending execution against Alabama ought to do it.












Old Dominion- Toss Them

They have managed to keep ticket sales strong, despite beating absolutely nobody. Their 2010 schedule is a little better than last year, featuring games against W&M, Gardner-Webb, and Cal Poly. They still have more than enough softies though like Campbell and Savannah State (seriously, why wouldn't you schedule SSU and pick up a guaranteed division win?). This is a team that has yet to accomplish anything meaningful besides actually playing the sport and they really don't have any opportunities to improve that this year.

Watch Them or Toss Them

These aren't your traditional powerhouses, but they are making noise with high expectations for this season. We'll tell you which ones to watch this year and which ones to toss.

South Dakota State- WATCH THEM

This is an all around solid team that might be 1 game away from making a deep playoff run. Keep an eye on them and you'll see results.

UT Chattanooga- TOSS THEM

A 6-5 record last season and the end of their NCAA mandated ban from the playoffs caused Mockingbird fans to be ecstatic about the coming year and turned many eyes to the long doormat, I mean dormant, team. Once you look at their record page though, you won't be as impressed. They had wins over Presbyterian, Glenville, an injury plagued Wofford, and Western Carolina which doesn't impress me much. The M-Birds are certainly going in the right direction, but they won't be in post season play this year.

Albany- TOSS THEM

They Great Danes might be favorites to win the NEC (which will receive an auto bid with this year's expanded playoffs) but the NEC is... well... not very strong. If Albany grabs the NEC ticket to the post season, don't expect them to make it to the second round. They simply don't have the team speed necessary to compete against the best of the FCS.

Jacksonville State- WATCH THEM

The Gamechickens will be playoff eligible this year and stand a strong chance to make it. Even with Perrilloux gone, there is plenty of talent and experience left on this team. With a beautifully expanded stadium and high expectations for this season, expect a determined and solid team to make a playoff entrance.

NCAA Division 1 Football

There has been much debate over the past few years about instituting a playoff system for Division 1 football. The debate has even reached the halls of Congress (who should probably be busy doing other things. War and healthcare discussion comes to mind) so we clearly need some kind of consensus. Well, what if I told you that there was already a playoff system in Division 1 football? What if I said that the 2009 Division 1 National Champion had already been crowned? If I haven't confused you yet, what if I said that the Champion was Villanova? This Division system is called the FCS.

Many, if not most, fans of FBS teams don't even know what the FCS is. These FBS fans mistakenly refer to teams like McNeese State, Cal Poly, and Georgia Southern as "Division 2" teams. This is not the case. Division 1 football is split into 2 subdivisions: the Football Bowl Subdivision and the Football Championship Subdivision. In the FCS, teams are allowed to have have 63 scholarship players while the FBS allows 85. This means that FBS teams are generally more powerful, but not by much. FCS teams also generally have lower game attendance, but this is not a hard and fast rule. Idaho, which just won the Humanitarian Bowl, plays out of the Kibbie Dome, which only seats 15,000. Appalachian State recently renovated their stadium and it now holds over 20,000. Troy, champion of the FBS SunBelt Conference only averaged 18,000 in attendance per game in 2009, while several FCS teams averaged more.

My point is this: those who demand a playoff system at the Division 1 level are asking for something they already have. If you want your team to compete for a D1 National Championship fair and square with no computer mumbo jumbo, maybe your team needs to join the ranks of the many distinguised FCS teams. While I can't honestly expect a team like Oregon to switch subdivisions, I don't think I'm out of line for expecting their fans to be more aware of Division 1 football.

If you do nothing else, at least give me this; check your team's schedule and find out if that pushover D2 team you have slated to open the season is really D2 or D1 FCS. Find out a little about your FCS opponent. You might just find yourself quite interested in the lesser known school.

Weirdest College Mascots

College football is just around the corner, so I thought I would compile a little list of some of the strangest college mascots. Most teams pick a mascot that is either scary or has some sort of geological significance, but others run right off the tarmac and keep going straight into the terminal.

10. Hawaii- Rainbow Warriors. If you’re gay, that’s your own business, but a football team should never conjure up images of homosexuality. Sure, Hawaii has changed to just the "Warriors" but we all know what's up.

9. Providence College- Friars. Yeah, pacifist priests. That’ll strike fear into the hearts of the opposition. Not to mention their costumed mascot is really creepy looking. He just looks like a pedophile sneaking around underneath a sheet and that’s the last thing a priest needs to remind you of.

8. Elon- Phoenix. Mascots should be real things, not a mythical flaming bird plucked out of Harry Potter.

7. Notre Dame- Fighting Irish. First off, they don’t pronounce Notre Dame correctly. Secondly, Notre Dame is in France, so the whole Irish thing doesn’t make any sense. Thirdly, ND fans abuse Irish stereotypes to the point of being completely offensive.

6. Minnesota- Golden Gophers. Gophers are not scary. They dig up your yard and then get caught in traps. Also, their costumed mascot, Goldy Gopher, looks like he deserves a huge punch in the face.

5. Pace University- Setters. The Pace Setters. If your name is a pun, you should be banned from sports.

4. Presbyterian- Blue Hose. A hose that is blue colored. I don’t get it. Is the hose supposed to spray you? Does the team choke you with it? Is it supposed to be a group of slutty smurfs? Inanimate objects just make for stupid mascots.

3. Schools in Oregon- Some gems from this state include Beavers, Ducks, and Hustlin’ Owls, not to mention a school actually named the “Birthingway College of Midwifery.” Seriously, somebody should check the water in Oregon.

2. UC Santa Cruz- Banana Slugs. This one is sort of a self inflicted joke, so in that regard it’s almost cool. Almost.

1. Evergreen State- Geoducks. Geoducks are big, nasty, slimy clams. Not to mention they’re the most phallic looking thing found in nature besides an actual penis.