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.

2011 Gildan New Mexico Bowl Preview

Date: December 17, 2011 2:00 ET
Stadium: University Stadium, Albuquerque, New Mexico
Payout: $750,000
Played: 2006-present
Former Names: N/A
Broadcasters: Clay Matvick, Brian Griese
Sideline Reporter: Jessica Mendoza
All Time Series: 1-0 Wyoming
Line: Temple by 7

	Wyoming			Temple
Overall Record	8-4		Overall Record	8-4
Conference Record	5-2		Conference Record	5-3
Bowl Record	6-6		Bowl Record	1-2
Last Bowl Win	2009 New Mexico		Last Bowl Win	1979 Garden State

Big East Expansion Targets

With the announced departure of West Virginia from the Big East last Friday, along with the previous news of TCU, Pittsburgh, and Syracuse turning their backs on the Big East, the once-proud conference is fighting for its survival.

The Big East is looking to add Houston, Southern Methodist, and Central Florida in all sports.

The Big East is looking to add Boise State, Air Force, and Navy as football-only members.

The Big East will need to make one more invitation to get to John Marinatto's desired size of twelve members with the recent loss of West Virginia. Other schools being considered are BYU, Army, Temple, East Carolina, and Memphis.

Looking at how unstable the Big East is right now, why would any school want to make the jump? There is no guarantee the Big East will keep its autobid to the BCS after 2013 even if it does patch itself back together. Announcements on whether these schools will go to the Big East or not will be released tomorrow it is rumored. It is unlikely all of the six aformentioned schools will join if invited.

The Big East needs to figure out what it wants to be: a basketball conference or a conference for all sports. Some conference members don't field football teams. Some conference members like Notre Dame are involved in all sports except football. Other conference members are committed in all sports. There are offers are being made to schools to be football-only members. Unequal commitments will not work in the long term. The Big East needs to get this in its head or it will forever be destined to fail.

Helmet Stickers: Week 4

ACC—No. 21 Clemson knocked off No. 11 Florida State 35-30, giving the Tigers their first 4-0 start since 2007. The Tigers have beaten the Seminoles five-straight in Death Valley. It was Clemson’s fourth game this season with 455 yards or more. Clemson freshman Sammy Watkins had 141 yards and two touchdowns on eight receptions. After beating two ranked opponents in consecutive weeks, Clemson looks like the dominant team in the ACC.

Big 10—No. 22 Michigan picked up a solid win over San Diego State in the weekend before Big 10 conference games begin. It was the Aztecs first loss of the season. Denard Robinson rushed for three touchdowns in the first half and ended the game with 200 yards on the ground. The Wolverines were very one-dimensional running for 320 yards and passing for 93 yards. Brady Hoke is the third coach in UM history to defeat the team he coached the previous season.

Big 12—Kansas State snuffed Miami’s Jacory Harris on a fourth down run on the K-State goal line with 49 seconds left to end any chance the Hurricanes had of defeating the Wildcats. Miami had the ball on the Kansas State 2-yard line on first down, but threw an incompletion. On second and third down, the Wildcats defense stopped rushing attempts. The Kansas State offense was just as good. Wildcats running back John Hubert ran for 167 yards, averaging 9.2 yards per carry. In 145 of the last 150 games where the Wildcats led at the half, they won. That is called finishing.

Big East—On Thursday night, the Cincinnati Bearcats blasted the North Carolina State Wolfpack 44-14, avenging last year’s loss. Cincinnati quarterback Zach Collaros threw two touchdowns and rushed for two more. Bearcats running back Isaiah Pead ran for 167 yards and accounted for two scores—one on the ground and another on a catch. The Cincinnati defense put up six sacks, forced three turnovers, and gave the Wolfpack -26 yards rushing. The Bearcats have not lost a nonconference game at Nippert Stadium since 2003.

C-USA—A 2-1 Southern Miss team defeated a 2-1 Virginia squad 30-24 Saturday afternoon. The Golden Eagles avoided giving the ball back to Virginia with less than 3 minutes left and a three-point lead when Austin Davis connected with Tracy Lampley with a 41-yard completion on third and 23. Golden Eagles quarterback Austin Davis threw for 313 yards and all three of Southern Mississippi’s touchdowns. The Golden Eagles defense had three picks. Both teams had 374 yards of offense. Southern Miss has beaten Virginia in the last two meetings.

MAC—Temple defeated Maryland 38-7 in College Park. Temple had never beaten the Terrapins before or any other ACC team for that matter. Maryland was previously 6-0 against Temple, including winning the last two games by a combined 54 points. The Owls controlled the clock for 41:01 and outgained Maryland 425 to 240. Owls running back Bernard Pierce had a school-record five rushing touchdowns. Temple wide receiver Rod Streator blocked a Maryland punt in the first quarter. Maryland had not had a punt blocked in 139 consecutive games, dating back to 1999. Maryland did not score until garbage time at the end of the fourth quarter.

MWC—Colorado State punted, losing 21-13, with 2:17 left in its game against Utah State in Logan. When Utah State fumbled the punt return, Colorado State recovered the ball and punched in a touchdown four Chris Nwoke-runs later. A two-point conversion pass to Crockett Gillmore tied the game at 21-21, forcing overtime. Both teams rushed for touchdowns in the first overtime to get to 28-28. Colorado State scored 7 points in the second overtime off a 7-yard pass to tight end Crockett Gillmore. Utah State’s Robert Turbin answered with a touchdown, but Utah State elected to go for a two-point conversion for the win. The Aggies rushed Robert Turbin on the two-point conversion attempt, but the Rams defense got the stop and the 35-34 victory.

Pac-12—Arizona State downed No. 23 Southern California 43-22 at Sun Devil Stadium, ending an 11-game losing streak to the Trojans. The Sun Devils forced four turnovers and the Trojans forced none of their own. Standout middle linebacker Vontaze Burfict had an interception, and outside linebacker Shelly Lyon returned an interception for a score late in the fourth to end any hopes the Trojans could get back in the game. Brock Osweiler threw two scores and Cameron Marshall rushed for three scores after an ankle injury in last Saturday’s game against Illinois.

SEC—No. 2 Louisiana State made a mockery out of No. 16 West Virginia on primetime with a 47-21 victory. The LSU defense stopped a high-octane Mountaineer attack. The Tigers won the turnover battle 4-0. LSU punter Brad Wing averaged 48.7 yards per punt. LSU cornerback Morris Claiborne ran back a kickoff for a 99-yard touchdown late in the third quarter. The Tigers have made a case for being No. 1 after beating No.3 Oregon, No. 25 Mississippi State, and No. 16 West Virginia all away from home in just the first four weeks of the season.

Sun Belt—North Texas got its first win of the season at home this Saturday over BCS-conference foe Indiana by a score of 24-21. Mean Green running back Lance Dunbar accumulated 152 receiving yards and 127 rushing yards, despite fumbling twice. Mean Green quarterback Derek Thompson threw for 201 yards, all three of North Texas’ touchdowns, and one pick-six in the fourth quarter. The Mean Green led 24-0 before the Hoosiers stormed back in the fourth quarter behind their backup quarterback Dusty Kiel. North Texas recovered an onside kick with 1:05 left to secure its first win.

WAC—San Jose State ended a thirteen-game losing streak by beating New Mexico State 34-24 Saturday at Spartan Stadium. Spartan Brandon Rutley rushed for 209 yards and two touchdowns, becoming the first player at SJSU to rush for over 200 yards in a game in seven years. Spartan quarterback Matt Faulkner threw for 236 yards and two touchdowns, both caught by tight end Ryan Otten. SJSU played a clean game, only committing one penalty for 5 yards. The Spartans got their first win since beating Southern Utah on September 18, 2010.

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.

All Hell Could Break Loose This Week

If Texas A&M heads to the Southeastern Conference next week, the conference shuffle will start all over again.

Likely, the SEC would want to get a fourteenth team for the sake of balance. It will likely go after Florida State or Clemson from the ACC, or Missouri from the Big 12. Right now, Mizzou says it is committed to staying in the Big 12. Other sexy additions could be Louisville, Georgia Tech, or Virginia Tech. Any of these teams would geographically be a good fit for the SEC.

To replace the Aggies, the Big 12 would likely go after Houston, Texas Christian, Southern Methodist, or BYU. As long as Texas and Oklahoma stick together, the conference could probably survive in some form.

The Big Ten and Pac-12 could expand as well, but that won't likely happen unless it becomes apparent alot of dominoes start falling and these conferences need to go on the defense to stay competitive with a superconference consisting of either fourteen or sixteen teams.

The Big East and ACC sit in a precarious position. Both could get poached from. They are both seen as more of basketball conferences rather than football conferences. Keep in mind that college football generates more money than college basketball. The Big East needs to get on with expanding to ten teams if it wants to ensure its survival. Moving Villanova's football program up from the FCS to the FBS would require a much larger stadium than Villanova Stadium, and it looks like the Wildcats either don't have the space and/or money to expand their miniscule 12,500-seat stadium. Using Lincoln Financial Field, where the Philadelphia Eagles play, for home games is not an option; Temple uses this stadium as its home field.

MAC Home Attendance Figures

	Akron			Ball State
InfoCision Stadium			Scheumann Stadium
S4 Syracuse	15,969		S2 SE Missouri State	10,753
S11 Gardner-Webb	10,046		S11 Liberty	9,110
O2 Northern Illinois	12,133		O9 Western Michigan	11,963
O23 Western Michigan	10,073		O16 Eastern Michigan	10,956
N17 Miami (OH)	7,671		N6 Akron	5,377
N26 Buffalo	5,216		N20 Northern Illinois	5,524
AVERAGE	10,185		AVERAGE	8,947
	Bowling Green			Buffalo
Perry Stadium			UB Stadium
S18 Marshall	20,515		S2 Rhode Island	16,273
O2 Buffalo	14,544		S18 UCF	14,312
O23 Kent State	14,279		O23 Temple	13,371
N10 Miami (OH)	12,073		O30 Miami (OH)	12,786
N26 Western Michigan	5,121		N12 Ball State	11,355
			N20 Eastern Michigan	9,786
AVERAGE	13,306		AVERAGE	12,981
	Central Michigan			Eastern Michigan
Kelly/Shorts Stadium			Rynearson Stadium
S2 Hampton	17,311		S4 Army	11,318
O2 Ball State	20,152		S18 Central Michigan	20,348
O16 Miami (OH)	24,761		O2 Ohio	16,753
O30 Bowling Green	17,659		O30 Toledo	25,860
N5 Western Michigan	22,355		N26 Northern Illinois	5,147
AVERAGE	20,448		AVERAGE	15,885
	Kent State			Miami (OH)
Dix Stadium			Yager Stadium
S2 Murray State	16,535		S11 Eastern Michigan	12,857
O9 Akron	24,221		S18 Colorado State	16,691
O30 Ball State	15,468		O2 Kent State	17,666
N6 Temple	15,125		O23 Ohio	17,144
N13 Army	17,222		N23 Temple	13,235
N26 Ohio	8,340
AVERAGE	16,152		AVERAGE	15,519
	Northern Illinois			Ohio
Huskie Stadium			Peden Stadium
S11 North Dakota	18,046		S4 Wofford	22,955
O9 Temple	14,011		S11 Toledo	19,455
O16 Buffalo	21,230		O9 Bowling Green	19,855
O23 Central Michigan	17,042		O16 Akron	21,645
N9 Toledo	18,472		O30 UL-Lafayette	15,255
			N4 Buffalo	15,112
AVERAGE	17,760		AVERAGE	19,046
	Temple			Toledo
Lincoln Financial Field			Glass Bowl
S3 Villanova	32,193		S3 Arizona	25,907
S9 Central Mcihigan	15,152		O2 Wyoming	20,843
S18 Connecticut	18,702		O16 Kent State	20,048
O16 Bowling Green	23,045		O23 Ball State	15,010
O30 Akron	17,563		N17 Bowling Green	22,071
N16 Ohio	16,433		N26 Central Michigan	12,121
AVERAGE	20,515		AVERAGE	19,333
	Western Michigan
Waldo Stadium
S11 Nicholls State	19,327
S18 Toledo	14,216
O2 Idaho	18,508
O30 Northern Illinois	12,578
N13 Eastern Michigan	12,136
N20 Kent State	8,763
AVERAGE	14,255

AVERAGE ATTENDANCE BY SCHOOL

Temple	20,515
Central Michigan	20,448
Toledo	19,333
Ohio	19,046
Northern Illinois	17,760
Kent State	16,152
Eastern Michigan	15,885
Miami (OH)	15,519
Western Michigan	14,255
Bowling Green	13,306
Buffalo	12,981
Akron	10,185
Ball State	8,947