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Reflections on the new season

By Times staff writer

© St. Petersburg Times,
published August 31, 2001

WELCOME BACK: Pete Carroll has college coaching experience, but it has been 17 years. That's why his selection as the Southern California coach was met with some skepticism. The Trojans have not won the Pac-10 since 1995, and last year they lost five straight. But Carroll brought in former BYU offensive coordinator Norm Chow, allowing the former New England Patriots and New York Jets coach to concentrate on his specialty, defense. It will be interesting to see how quickly Carroll adapts.

GRANDDADDY GOES PRIME TIME: The traffic in Southern California will be atrocious, but nonetheless it promises to be an historic evening when the season culminates in the Rose Bowl on Jan. 3. For the first time, the Rose Bowl will be the designated championship game in the Bowl Championship Series. No Big Ten-Pac-10 showdown -- unless the winners of those conferences finish first and second in the final BCS standings. Unlike most years, however, the game will not be played on the traditional New Year's holiday. And a 5 p.m. local starting time promises to make things interesting. Oh well, the price of progress.

BCS TINKERING: Florida State lost to Miami last season, yet the Seminoles still got to play in the national title game against Oklahoma. When FSU lost 13-2, most wondered if it would have been better if Miami had played the Sooners. And the Hurricanes would have if the new BCS rules had been in place. In essence, the formula for picking the top two teams has changed, with more weight given to teams that knock off top-15 foes, and less credit given for lopsided victories. Also, a team's best and worst computer rankings will be thrown out. It makes a complicated system a bit more so.

MAJOR DUDS: It happens every season. Some team, coming off an excellent season, is expected to continue the good fortune, then bombs. Alabama "won" last year's award. It ranked third to start the season, then finished 3-8. Which team could it happen to this year? Oregon and Oregon State are possibilities. So is Texas. All are highly ranked, with question marks.

GONE, NOT FORGOTTEN: John Cooper is no longer the coach at Ohio State, replaced despite winning 70 percent of his games, 192 in his career. Lavell Edwards, 70, retired after his 29th season at BYU. Also not on the sideline this season: West Virginia's Don Nehlen, Virginia's George Welsh, Arizona's Dick Tomey and Missouri's Larry Smith. Each of those six coaches ranked among the top 11 active winningest coaches last season.

PROWLING OWLS: Think Temple might have something to prove? The Owls are being booted out of the Big East after this season, and they have an experienced team with 25 seniors that could inflict some damage, if not a few upsets. Since joining the league in 1991, the Owls are just 9-58 in the Big East and have averaged less than 19,000 fans. Hence, the Big East move. Coach Bobby Wallace should have no trouble motivating his team.

STREAKS: Reigning national champion Oklahoma begins the season with the nation's longest winning streak. The Sooners have won 12 straight, all coming in their 2000 championship season. Oklahoma's last loss came on New Year's Eve 1999, in the Independence Bowl against Mississippi. Miami has won 10 in a row, followed by Washington with eight straight. Duke has the longest losing streak at 12 in a row. Baylor, Kentucky, Louisiana-Monroe and Wyoming each have lost eight straight.

BEAR CHASE: Most figured this would have been taken care of last season. Of course, most didn't figure Penn State to be so bad. The Nittany Lions won five games, leaving coach Joe Paterno one short of Bear Bryant's all-time record of 323. Paterno can tie with a victory at home Saturday against Miami, or next week at Virginia. But if he doesn't hurry up, Florida State's Bobby Bowden will beat him to it. Bowden has 315 wins.

RARITIES: It's not as if Florida State has fallen into the abyss. But for the first time in 11 years, the Seminoles are not ranked in the top four in ESPN's preseason poll. ... Meanwhile, the Big Ten has just one team in the Top 10 for the first time since 1993, with Michigan ranked 10th. It is the first time in the past 11 coaches polls that the league's highest-rated team has been ranked worse than eighth.

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