Least Returning Starters

Teams with the least returning starters for the 2012 season.

New Mexico State 4
The Aggies return fewer starters than any team in the country. On offense, both tackles and a wide receiver return, while the defense will only see the return of the starting strong side linebacker. Most of the recruits coming into the program are junior college transfers.

Air Force 6
The Falcons return just three starters on both their offense and defense. Don't expect Air Force to go to their sixth consecutive bowl with the addition of three former WAC teams to the Mountain West this season.

Penn State 6
With the recent departures of returning starters Silas Redd and Justin Brown, Penn State is going into the 2012 campaign with just six starters from 2011. Redd and Brown combined for most of the Nittany Lions' offense. Penn State will probably not be relevant in college football this season.

Temple 7
Things are setting up badly for Temple in 2012. The team lost Bernard Pierce in the NFL draft and has moved back to the Big East after a seven year absence. Only two starters return on offense. Preseason rags are predicting the Owls to go 1-6 in conference games.

Boise State 7
After years of dominance, 2012 looks to be the year the Broncos drop off. Only one returning starter comes back on defense. Who will replace Kellen Moore? Chris Petersen has got to be nervous about facing Michigan State on national television August 31st.

Idaho 7
The Vandals are in a precarious position. They were 111th in offense and 101st in defense last season. With few starters returning, it will be hard to return to a bowl for the first time since 2009. The only positive note is that the WAC is very watered-down with the departures of Fresno State, Nevada, and Hawaii.

On The Hot Seat: Week 14

1. David Bailiff—Rice went 4-8 this season and had its fourth sub-.500 season under Bailiff in his five seasons leading the program. Under Bailiff, the Owls have never won more than 3 conference games in a season except for the 2008 season where Rice won the Texas Bowl.

2. Robb Akey—The Vandals finished their fifth season under Akey, going 2-10. Akey has an overall winning percentage of .306 and a winning percentage of .259 against FBS opponents.

3. Mike Riley—Oregon State finished the season 3-9, losing the season finale to Oregon by a score of 49-21. The Beavers have now lost the last four Civil Wars. Mike Riley had his worst campaign as a head coach and has brought Oregon State fans back-to-back losing seasons.

4. David Cutcliffe—Cutcliffe is a good coach but in a very tough place to win. However, Duke seems to be paying him way too much money, $1.65 million per year, for providing four losing seasons. Furthermore, Cutcliffe’s Blue Devils are only 2-2 against FCS teams.

5. Derek Dooley—Dooley is 11-14 after two seasons. Surely Tennessee will need a lot of time to rebuild into the great program it once was, but Volunteer fans have a short fuse. Dooley will need to get at least 7 wins in the regular season next year to survive.

6. Mike Price—Mike Price finished his eighth season in El Paso with a 5-7 record. Each of Price’s last six seasons has featured more losses than wins. Price is 0-3 in bowl games during his eight-year tenure. How long will the Miners athletic department be complacent with subpar performance?

7. Frank Spaziani—Boston College is not going to a bowl game for the first time since the 1998 season. Boston College’s offense was atrocious this season, scoring more than 19 points only in three games. Spaziani’s record as a head coach plummeted to 20-19 after a 4-8 season.

8. Randy Edsall—Edsall inherited a 9-4 team and went 2-10 in his first season. One such loss was from a 38-7 thumping by Temple, Maryland’s first loss to Temple ever. Eight of the ten losses were by double-digit margins. Usually coaches shouldn’t be judged after one or two seasons, but Maryland has become the ACC’s blow-up doll.

9. Bobby Hauck—Hauck is 4-21 after his first two seasons. His winning percentage of .160 is the worst in the history of UNLV Rebels football.

10. DeWayne Walker—Walker’s Aggies are 9-29 in three seasons. Walker needs to show improvement in a WAC that becomes weaker next year with the departure of Hawaii, Fresno State, and Nevada.

Waiting list: Jeff Quinn, Dan Enos

Fired: Paul Wulff, Neil Callaway, Ron Zook, Steve Fairchild, Dennis Erickson, Turner Gill, Rob Ianello, Larry Porter, Rick Neuheisel, Mike Sherman, Pat Hill

Helmet Stickers: Week 5

ACC—No. 21 Georgia Tech is off to its best start since it won the national championship in 1990. The Yellow Jackets are 5-0 after pasting North Carolina State 45-35 on Saturday. Georgia Tech opened the game 21-0, but let the Wolfpack climb back to within a touchdown. In the fourth quarter, the Yellow Jackets scored three touchdowns in a span of 2 minutes and 22 seconds and later a field goal. Georgia Tech safety Isaiah Johnson returned an interception for 34 yards and a touchdown.

Big 10—Michigan State came into Ohio Stadium with the No. 1 defense in the nation and played like it. The Spartans defeated the Buckeyes 10-7 and came close to shutting the Buckeyes out at home for the first time since October 2, 1982. The Spartans finally allowed Ohio State to score with 10 seconds left in the game. Michigan State tallied nine sacks and held Ohio State to 35 yards rushing on 39 attempts. The Spartans beat the Buckeyes for the first time since 1999.

Big 12—Kansas State cherry-popped No. 15 Baylor 36-35 in Manhattan Saturday. Trailing Baylor 35-33, K-State linebacker Arthur Brown dealt Robert Griffin III his first interception of the season to set up a 31-yard field goal to get the lead. Baylor had one more shot, but the Wildcats defense made them go four-and-out. Arthur Brown led the K-State defense with 8 tackles and 2 sacks in the game. The Wildcats are now 4-0 and will probably enter the Top 25.

Big East—On Thursday night, Pittsburgh gave a 4-0 No. 16 South Florida team its first loss of the season in a 44-17 decision. Pitt got a much needed win after losses to Iowa and Notre Dame, and beat a ranked opponent for the first time since 2008. Panthers running back Ray Graham ran for 226 yards and two touchdowns in a breakout performance. Pitt’s conversion of 9 out of 15 third downs kept the Bulls’ defense on the field and wore South Florida out.

C-USA—The Thundering Herd came into Papa John’s Cardinal Stadium and beat the Cardinals 17-13. With less than 5 minutes left in the fourth quarter, Marshall linebacker Tyson Gale intercepted Louisville’s Teddy Bridgewater on the Louisville 30-yard line. With good field position, Marshall took the lead with 1:49 left in the game on a 4-yard touchdown pass from Rakeem Cato to tight end C.J. Crawford. On Louisville’s ensuing drive, safety Omar Brown intercepted Louisville’s Teddy Bridgewater to seal the win for the Thundering Herd. Marshall outgained Louisville 353 yards to 281 yards.

MAC—Western Michigan beat UConn 38-31 in East Hartford, Connecticut. Broncos quarterback Alex Carder threw for a career-high 479 yards and five touchdowns. Three Broncos receivers had over 100-yards receiving: Jordan White (173 yards), Chleb Ravenell (123 yards), and Robert Arnheim (113 yards). Western Michigan overcame fifteen penalties for 119 yards; the Broncos had more penalty yards than offensive yards in the first quarter. Western Michigan got its first win over Connecticut, evening the all-time series to 1-1.

MWC—Air Force beat fellow service academy Navy by a score of 35-34 in overtime. The Midshipmen scored six in overtime and then had their extra point attempt blocked by the Falcons. The Falcons proceeded to score a touchdown and an extra point to get a one-point win over their rival. Air Force linebacker Brady Amack had 23 tackles in the game. If Air Force can beat Army on November 5^th, it will retain the Commander-in-Chief’s trophy for another year.

Pac-12—Southern California outlasted Arizona in a shootout. The Trojans won 48 to 41 in a game that did not see much defense from either team. Matt Barkley set a school-record passing for 468 yards. Barkley threw four touchdowns and rushed for another. Robert Woods had 255 yards receiving and two touchdowns. Trojan safety T.J. McDonald had two interceptions. The Trojans are undefeated in the Los Angeles Coliseum this year (4 games). USC has beaten the Wildcats in 9 of the two teams last 10 meetings.

SEC—No. 18 Arkansas erased an 18-point deficit at halftime and beat No. 14 Texas A&M by a score of 42-38. The Razorback defense regrouped and only allowed a field goal in the second half. Quarterback Tyler Wilson passed for a school-record 510 yards. Wide receiver Jarius Wright set a school-record for receiving yards with 281 yards. The Razorbacks proved the Aggies are not ready for the SEC. The Aggies have not beaten an SEC team in sixteen years.

Sun Belt—Troy got by UAB 24-23 in Troy, Alabama Saturday. Going into the fourth quarter, Troy was losing by 9 points. After hitting a field goal with 5:18 left, Troy cornerback Jimmie Anderson intercepted a pass on the next series and took it to UAB’s 12 yard line. Troy’s D.J. Taylor ran in the ball from 2 yard out with 4:07 remaining to get the go-ahead score for Troy. D.J. Taylor rushed for a total of three touchdowns in the win over the Blazers.

WAC—New Mexico State beat in-state rival New Mexico in Albuquerque Saturday by a score of 42-28. The Aggies beat the Lobos by their largest margin of victory since 1968. NMSU quarterback Matt Christian threw for 296 yards and four touchdowns. He also rushed for 101 yards and a touchdown. NMSU running back Kenny Turner rushed for 109 yards and a touchdown. The Aggies have now beat the Lobos three straight times, which the program has not done in over forty years.

Independents—Army routed Tulane 45-6 in West Point. Tulane scored a touchdown on its first possession of the game, followed by Army scoring 45 unanswered points. Eleven different Black Knights had rushing touches in the game. Army punter Chris Boldt averaged 55 yards per punt. Army has now beaten Tulane in four of the last five meetings between the schools. Army left Conference USA after the 2004 season.

On The Hot Seat: Week 4

1. Paul Wulff—Paul Wulff has got the Cougars at 2-1 after four weeks of football. Wazzou beat FCS Idaho State 64-21 and UNLV 59-7, before falling to San Diego State in Week 3 by a margin of 18. Wulff is still 7-33 at his alma mater and needs to show he can win in the Pac-12.

2. Mike Riley—The Oregon State Beavers are 0-3 after losing to FCS Sacramento State, getting shutout 35-0 by Wisconsin, and losing at home this past Saturday to a suspect UCLA team whose coach is also on the hot seat. Riley also posted a meager 5-7 record last year after high expectations in Corvallis.

3. Neil Callaway—The Blazers are 0-3 to start the season and 0-2 in conference games. Things are not looking good in Birmingham. UAB has a tough road game against Troy next week.

4. Bob Toledo—The Green are 2-2 overall and 1-1 in Conference USA games. Things could be better, and things could be worse. Tulane needs to win games and beating Army on the road next week would help Toledo get off the hot seat.

5. Rick Neuheisel—The Bruins have started the season 2-2, which includes wins over San Jose State and Oregon State—two teams that don’t look to be too good this year. The results of UCLA’s eight upcoming Pac-12 games will determine whether Neuheisel will be out of a job or kept on.

6. Houston Nutt—After two 9-4 seasons in 2008 and 2009, Ole Miss dropped to 4-8 in 2010 including a loss to 1AA Jacksonville State. The 2011 season has started out poorly with losses to BYU, Vanderbilt, and Georgia. SEC bottomfeeder Vanderbilt beat the Rebels 30-7. The only win came over 1AA Southern Illinois.

7. David Bailiff—Rice upset Purdue 24-22 on September 10^th. While the Owls are 1-2, they have yet to play a conference game yet. If the Owls can make some noise in the C-USA West Division this year, Bailiff may be still around.

8. Robb Akey—Akey is 1-3 this season, only beating FCS school North Dakota. Akey has had only one winning season and is now in his fifth year. There is little excitement in Moscow over Vandals football, depicted by the empty seats in the Kibbie Dome.

9. Frank Spaziani—Boston College started the season 1-3, with the only win coming over 1AA UMass. The Eagles have lost at home to Northwestern and Duke and on the road to UCF. Spaz is also 0 for 2 against Notre Dame during his tenure. Boston College needs to defend its reputation.

10. DeWayne Walker—Walker got the biggest win of his head coaching career against Minnesota Week 2. Other than the big upset in Minneapolis, NMSU has lost to rival UTEP, Ohio, and SJSU. Will the Aggies follow the Lobos example and hit the reset button this season?

Waiting list: Mike Price, Ron English, Steve Fairchild, Mike Stoops

Fired: Mike Locksley

Off the hot seat: Ron Zook, Dennis Erickson

We will revisit On The Hot Seat after Week 6.

Helmet Stickers: Week 2

ACC—North Carolina squeezed by Rutgers 24-22 after forcing the Scarlet Knights to turn the ball over on downs on their final possession with 2:32 left in the game. The Tarheel run defense was stellar, holding the Scarlet Knights to 1 yard on the ground on 25 attempts. North Carolina got four sacks, while providing perfect protection for its own signal-caller. The strangest stat of the game was that the Tarheels were -5 in turnover margin, attributed to three picks and two fumbles, yet still won the game.

Big 10—No. 8 Wisconsin pitched a shutout against Oregon State in Madison, 35-0. The Wisconsin defense held the Beavers to just 23 rushing yards on 24 rushing attempts. The Badgers forced two fumbles and gave up no turnovers of their own. The Badgers dominated every facet of the game and controlled the field position battle by capitalizing on three Beaver special teams mistakes.

Big 12—In a rematch of last year’s Alamo Bowl, the result was the same and the margin of victory was one field goal off. No. 9 Oklahoma State blasted Arizona for the second time in nine months. Cowboys quarterback Brandon Weeden was 42 of 53 for 397 yards. He started the game completing 22 of his first 23 passes. Cowboys wideout Justin Blackmon had his fourteenth straight appearance with at least 100 yards receiving. Oklahoma State’s defense held Arizona’s explosive offense to just two touchdowns.

Big East—South Florida was the only Big East team to win a game not over an FCS opponent, so the Bulls get a helmet sticker this week for a dominating 37-7 rout of Ball State. The Bulls forced a fumble on the opening kickoff, and Mark Joyce ran it in for a touchdown. Just 8 seconds into the game, South Florida was in control. The Bulls amassed 519 yards of total offense, using ten receivers, five rushers, and two quarterbacks.

C-USA—Rice upset Purdue 24-22 at home on Saturday. The Boilermakers drove to the Owls’ 14-yard line in the final minute and planned to kick a field goal on the final play to escape Houston with a win. Rice linebacker Justin Allen broke through Purdue’s offensive line and blocked Purdue placekicker Carson Wiggs’ 31-yard field goal attempt. This ended a 22-game streak of being a doormat to BCS conference opponents. The Rice Owls had not beaten such a team since September 8, 2001 in a contest against Duke. The last time the Owls beat a Big Ten team was in 1997 against Northwestern. This was a huge win for Rice.

MAC—Temple gets the helmet sticker for Week 2 since the Owls were the only Mid-America Conference team to beat an opponent that was not from the FCS. Temple rolled the Akron Zips 41-3. The Owls have started 2-0 in consecutive seasons for the first time since the late 1960’s and have now beaten Akron five-straight times. Temple’s standout running back Bernard Pierce rushed for 150 yards and three touchdowns on eighteen carries. Backup running back Matt Brown had 85 yards on sixteen carries.

MWC—Texas Christian rebounded after a loss in Week 1 to Baylor by beating Air Force 35-19. The Horned Frogs were balanced on offense, passing for 206 yards and rushing for 204 yards. TCU quarterback Casey Pachall had an 80% completion rate. The Horned Frogs had three new starters on defense. Kenny Cain, starting at strongside linebacker for the injured Tanner Brock, tallied seven tackles. Texas Christian has not lost a Mountain West conference game since 2008 and should make another run for the conference title this year despite many new faces.

Pac-12—Arizona State debuted its new logo in a Friday night game that went to overtime. The restyled Sun Devils took out the No. 21 Mizzou Tigers after scoring 7 in overtime and subsequently shutting down Missouri’s attempt to score. Sun Devils senior wideout Aaron Pflugrad had eight catches for 180 yards and two touchdowns. Arizona State beat its first ranked opponent in the last eleven tries.

SEC—Auburn needed last minute heroics once again to preserve the longest unbeaten streak in the nation. After barely getting by Utah State last week, the Tigers stopped No. 16 Mississippi State, barely, on the final play of the game. Backup safety Ryan Smith stopped Bulldogs quarterback Chris Relf at the goal line to give the Tigers the 41-34 win. It was Smith’s fourth tackle of his career, and Auburn’s 17^th consecutive victory. Auburn is still a legitimate contender without Cam Newton or Nick Fairley.

Sun Belt—Florida International gets the Sun Belt helmet sticker again after defeating Louisville 24-17 on the road. This was the program’s first victory over a BCS conference team and the first time the team has started a season 2-0. The Golden Panthers were all about the big play. Wide receiver T.Y. Hilton had touchdown catches of 74 and 83 yards. Linebacker Winston Fraser returned an interception 71 yards for a touchdown. Mario Cristobal has to be a candidate for the next big head coach job opening based on what he has done at FIU.

WAC—New Mexico State picked up a 28-21 win over Minnesota in Minneapolis Saturday. The Aggies were 22.5 point underdogs. This was NMSU’s first win over a BCS conference school since 1999, when it beat Arizona State. DeWayne Walker got his first signature win as head coach against the school he played cornerback at, and the Aggies got their first win ever over a Big Ten team. With 20 seconds left in the game Minnesota head coach Larry Kill had a seizure. DeWayne Walker’s Aggie team was full of class when it gathered to pray for Larry Kill while he was being stabilized and taken to the hospital.

WAC Home Attendance Figures

	Boise State			Fresno State
Bronco Stadium			Bulldog Stadium
S25 Oregon State	34,137		S4 Cincinnati	37,238
O9 Toledo	33,833		O2 Cal Poly	37,069
O26 Louisiana Tech	32,026		O9 Hwaii	38,494
N6 Hawaii	34,060		O16 New Mexico State	32,334
N19 Fresno State	33,454		N13 Nevada	37,116
D4 Utah State	32,101		N27 Idaho	25,965
			D3 Illinois	30,625
AVERAGE	33,269		AVERAGE	34,120
	Hawaii			Idaho
Aloha Stadium			Kibbie Dome
S2 Hawaii	44,204		S2 North Dakota	11,466
S25 Charleston Southrn	30,300		S18 UNLV	15,390
O2 Louisiana Tech	29,469		O23 New Mexico State	13,812
O16 Nevada	42,031		N6 Nevada	11,247
O30 Idaho	37,466		N12 Boise State	16,453
N20 San Jose State	30,011		D4 San Jose State	8,011
D4 UNLV	37,820
AVERAGE	35,900		AVERAGE	12,730
	Louisiana Tech			Nevada
Joe Aillet Stadium			Mackay Stadium
S18 Navy	23,122		S2 Eastern Washington	16,313
S25 Southern Miss	22,344		S11 Colorado State	18,098
O9 Utah State	16,073		S17 California	28,809
O16 Idaho	19,750		O9 San Jose State	20,636
N6 Fresno State	17,057		O30 Utah State	11,558
D4 Nevada	18,562		N20 New Mexico State	10,906
			N26 Boise State	30,712
AVERAGE	19,485		AVERAGE	19,576
	New Mexico State			San Jose State
Aggie Memorial Stadium			Spartan Stadium
S11 San Jose State	16,891		S18 Southern Utah	16,739
O2 Boise State	19,661		O2 UC Davis	17,844
O9 New Mexico	21,437		O16 Boise State	20,239
O30 San Jose State	13,117		O23 Fresno State	11,314
N13 Louisiana Tech	12,486		N13 Utah State	12,239
N27 Hawaii	11,841		N27 Louisiana Tech	8,467
AVERAGE	15,906		AVERAGE	14,474
	Utah State
Romney Stadium
S11 Idaho State	18,347
S18 Fresno State	19,059
O1 BYU	24,152
O23 Hawaii	17,111
N6 New Mexico State	14,524
N20 Idaho	14,072
AVERAGE	17,878

AVERAGE ATTENDANCE BY SCHOOL

Hawaii	35,900
Fresno State	34,120
Boise State	33,269
Nevada	19,576
Louisiana Tech	19,485
Utah State	17,878
New Mexico State	15,906
San Jose State	14,474
Idaho	12,730