2012 Big Sky Conference Countdown: Cal Poly

The countdown continues with the Cal Poly Mustangs, the fourth and final newcomer to the Big Sky. The Mustangs have played almost every conference team on the gridiron over the years, and now they're officially a football-only member of the conference, beginning with this season.  They are coming off a 6-5 season in 2011 and hope for plenty of success in their first season.

They are the only team in the league that runs the triple option offense (much like their FBS counterparts at Georgia Tech and Navy), which makes it difficult for defenses to stop, because you never know who the ball carrier is going to be.  Head coach Tim Walsh (formerly head coach at Portland State) kept the system in place after former head coach Rich Ellerson accepted the head job at Army in 2009, while he ran a different system with the Vikings during his 14-year tenure in Portland.  Walsh is currently 17-16 as the Mustangs head coach, entering his fourth season in charge.

When a team runs an option attack, throwing the football doesn't happen very often.  No wonder starting quarterback Andre Broadous (#3 in above photo) only has ONE career interception to his credit (thrown in a 24-17 loss at UC Davis last November 5th).  He's back for his senior season, and while he led the team in passing (1235 yards and 9 touchdown passes), he's also the top returning rusher (797 yards on 204 carries) as leading rusher from 2011 Jake Romanelli graduated.  The team's leaders in receiving yards in 2011 are only sophomores in Lance Castaneda (26 catches for 283 yards and a touchdown) and Willie Tucker (14 catches for 265 yards and two touchdowns).

Defensively, the Mustangs struggled as they gave up almost 30 points a game, and that is something they'll have to improve on this year.  Their top three tacklers from last season are back: linebackers Johnny Millard (a junior) and Kennith Jackson (a senior), and senior cornerback Bijon Samoodi.  A co-leader in quarterback sacks is also back with junior defensive tackle Sullivan Grosz, who had 6.5 sacks last season.

MY TAKE: The Mustangs have always fielded a competitive team, and with Tim Walsh patrolling the sidelines, that isn't expected to change.  But if they want to contend for a conference title in their first season, it's important their defense lower their points against this season, because giving up 30 points a game won't help you win the conference, much less make the FCS Playoffs.

NEXT UP: Northern Colorado

Image credit: Brad Puckett/San Luis Obispo Tribune

2012 Big Sky Conference Countdown: UC Davis

Today, it's time to take a look the third of four Big Sky Conference newcomers, and the first of two football-only members.  The UC Davis Aggies are joining the conference this season after playing in the now-defunct Great West Conference (along with North Dakota, Southern Utah, and Cal Poly).  And the Aggies will definitely be a motivated team to play well in 2012, after finishing 2011 with a 4-7 record in the Great West's swan song.

Speaking of swan songs, the 2012 season will be just that for Aggies head coach Bob Biggs, who announced at the end of 2011 that this season will be his last on the UC Davis sideline.  Biggs has served as head coach at his alma mater since 1993, and has a career record of 140-78-1 over 19 seasons.  He previously served as the team's quarterbacks coach before becoming head coach, and also lettered for the Aggies from 1969 to 1972 as a quarterback.

The Aggies have had a penchant for sending solid quarterbacks to the NFL.  One of the most notable is Ken O'Brien, who had a successful career with the New York Jets during the mid to late 1980s.  Another Aggie that made it to the NFL was J.T. O'Sullivan, who was mostly a journeyman in the league, but now plays for the CFL's Saskatchewan Roughriders.

Offensively, the team's leading passer is back in 2012.  Junior Randy Wright started 10 of the team's 11 games last season, throwing for 2250 yards and 14 touchdowns.  In fact, 13 of Wright's 14 touchdown passes were caught by the team's two leading receivers, Tom Hemmingsen and Anthony Soto, who are both back this season.  Also, leading rusher Colton Silveria is back, as he's coming off a 603-yard, 6 touchdown freshman season.

MY THOUGHTS: If there is one team that could really use a bounceback season, it's these UC Davis Aggies.  There should be definite improvement on both sides of the football, as 2011 was a building year for the Aggies.  This will be coach Biggs' only season in the Big Sky, and with the success he's had in throughout his head coaching career, I could see the Aggies having a winning season in 2012.

Photo credit: Shazib Haq/The California Aggie

2012 Big Sky Conference Countdown: Southern Utah

Yesterday, the countdown began with the currently nickname-less North Dakota football team.  Today, it's time to take a look at another Big Sky newcomer: the Southern Utah Thunderbirds.

In 2011, the Thunderbirds ended their season with a respectable 6-5 record.  Their big win last season was at FBS member UNLV, where they crushed the Rebels 41-16.  They also blew out fellow Big Sky newcomer UC Davis in Cedar City with a 34-3 victory over the Aggies.  In the Thunderbirds' five losses in 2011, four of them were by seven points or less, including three straight last October (lost at home to North Dakota 26-20, at South Dakota 24-19, and at Cal Poly 31-27).

Heading into this season, the Thunderbirds bring back their starting quarterback in senior Brad Sorenson, who had a pretty good 2011 season (threw for 3,143 yards and 17 TDs).  But they are inexperienced at the other offensive skill positions, as leading rusher Austin Minefee and leading receiver Brady Measom both graduated over the offseason.  So the returning receivers and running backs will have to step up, or it could be a long season for the Thunderbirds offense.

On the defensive side of the ball, leading tackler Chad Hansen is back.  The junior linebacker led the team in total tackles with 104 (53 solo tackles).  However, the team's leader in sacks (Tyler Osbourne) and co-leaders in interceptions (Erron Vonner and Nick Witzmann) graduated, so there may be some holes to fill defensively.

MY THOUGHTS: The Thunderbirds are a young team heading into this season.  It helps their starting quarterback and leading tackler are back for the 2012 season, but there's a lot of younger guys that will have to step up if they want to duplicate or improve on their respectable 6-5 mark, and that might be difficult to accomplish playing in the more competitive Big Sky Conference.  They lost four of their five games by seven points or less, so sealing the deal in close games will be crucial if they even want a sniff of the conference title, let alone an FCS playoff berth.

NEXT UP: football-only newcomer UC Davis.

2012 Big Sky Conference Countdown: North Dakota

The preseason countdown begins with a look at a Big Sky Conference newcomer in the University of North Dakota.  

The team will begin the season without a nickname, the only school in the conference with that distinction (for now).  During the offseason, the controversial  Fighting Sioux nickname was retired by way of a statewide vote.  The school's athletics programs otherwise would have been deemed ineligible to participate in postseason competition per NCAA regulations, in regards to Native American-related nicknames.

  

Controversy aside, the football program has historically been strong, winning the Division II national championship in 2001, and finishing as runner-up in 2003.  In 2008, North Dakota began to make the transition from Division II to Division I, and the transition has boded well for them with a total record of 23-20 under the tutelage of head coach Chris Mussman.

North Dakota's best season since moving to Division I happened just last year, when the team finished 2011 with an 8-3 record and won a share of the final Great West Conference championship.  The team brings back their leading rusher from last season in junior Jake Miller (991 yards on 195 carries), but their most experienced quarterback is senior Marcus Hendrickson (career stats 13/47, 137 yds, 2 interceptions) who last took a snap in 2010 and did not take any last season.

Much of North Dakota's receiving corps is back, led by juniors Greg Hardin (43 catches, 549 yards, 3 TD) and R.J. McGill (34 catches, 433 yards, TD).  Their top tight ends are seniors Seth Nichols (13 catches, 109 yards, TD) and Seth Wisthoff (7 catches for 76 yards).  The rest of their tight ends are all underclassmen (sophomore long-snapper Taylor Grant, redshirt freshman Zach Alder, and true freshmen Luke Mathewson, Tucker Nordby, and Tanner Vesladahl).

Defensively, the team recorded 31 sacks and 8 interceptions.  They return their leaders in quarterback sacks (senior lineman Ross Brenneman) and one of their co-leaders in interceptions (sophomore defensive back Daryl Brown), but they also return as their top two returning tacklers, as leading tackler in 2011 Dan Hendrickson graduated.

MY THOUGHTS: With a bigger Big Sky, this will be an interesting season for the North Dakota football team, now that they're playing in a tougher and more competitive conference.  It's going to be interesting to know that they won't have a nickname for now, so that's something fans of other schools will have to get used to with the now-retired Fighting Sioux nickname on the shelf.  But they're a very good team and could easily turn some heads this season if they can play everybody tough.

Photo credit: juicedmuscle.com

2012 Big Sky Conference Football Countdown

Ah, yes...football season is just around the corner.

It's one of my favorite times of the year, and I'll be writing about the Big Sky Conference's football teams' outlooks heading into the coming season.  The league is bigger and better than it was in the past, with four new teams joining the conference on July 1st (two of them are football-only members).

The countdown will begin with the league's four newcomers: North Dakota and Southern Utah (all sports), as well as football-only members Cal Poly and UC Davis.  The outlooks on the conference's returning members continues with Northern Colorado and end with 2012 preseason favorite Montana State and defending conference champion Montana.

It should be an interesting season for one of the most powerful conferences in all of FCS football, with the addition of four new teams, as well as a new TV contract with Root Sports, which will bring the conference greater TV exposure than ever before.

Image credit: Big Sky Conference

The 2012 British Open: 1999 all over again

A true golf fan will always remember the 1999 British Open for how Jean van de Velde had a huge lead heading into the final round, leading Justin Leonard and Craig Parry by five strokes. He only needed a double-bogey at the 18th and final hole to wrap up an upset win at Carnoustie, until everything unraveled:



As a result, it forced a three-way playoff between Leonard and local competitor Paul Lawrie.  The four-hole playoff was won by Lawrie, who won it by three strokes over van de Velde and Leonard, capping off one of the biggest collapses in one of golf's majors.

Turn the clock ahead to today, and Adam Scott at St. Anne's.  Coming into the final round, Scott led the British Open by four strokes over Graeme McDowell and Brandt Snedeker.  2002 British Open champion Ernie Els was six strokes behind Scott.  As the final round unfolded, Scott was 11-under par after 68 holes, and then just like in 1999 with van de Velde, everything began to fall apart during the final four holes.

Els on the other hand, was having a great day as he was making a huge run to the lead, trying to capture his second Open championship.  At the end, Els went 2-under on the final round, while Scott went 5-over, which included four straight bogeys to end the round and complete the comeback for Els, as he captured his second career Open championship.

The events of today for the young Aussie should serve as a reminder that you can't always keep your foot on the gas pedal or put the car on cruise control while you're holding a big lead.  This is merely a learning experience for him, and if he enters the PGA Championship, hopefully the lessons learned from today will carry over once he tees off in Kiewah Island, South Carolina next month.

Photo credit: Getty Images

Don't throw Tim Thomas under the bus because of a decision

On Monday, the Stanley Cup champion Boston Bruins paid a visit to the White House--and an opportunity to meet with President Barack Obama. Everyone on the team--players, coaches, and team executives--took advantage of the opportunity to be honored by the leader of the free world. Everyone...except the man who backstopped the Bruins to their first championship in 39 years.

Goaltender Tim Thomas was the most noticeable absence, and he made his reason as to why he didn't join his teammates radically clear: he's not happy about the direction of America, and stated his reason for not attending on his official Facebook page. His decision to pass on a visit to the White House has given him both praise and criticism, regardless of what side of the political spectrum his fans (and to an extent, sports fans and non-sports fans in general) sit on. Those that have praised his decision have thanked him for being a true Patriot, while those who think the opposite have said that he shouldn't be talking about politics at all.

If people have a problem with an important part of a championship-winning team not visiting the White House with his teammates, then they simply shouldn't say anything at all. Thomas made this decision as an individual, as he stated in that Facebook post. This decision shouldn't affect his play on the ice, but in all seriousness, people shouldn't be ragging on the guy over not meeting with the President.

As an individual myself, my respect for Thomas went through the roof for staying true to what he believed in. You may have won the Stanley Cup away from my beloved Vancouver Canucks, but bravo, Mr. Thomas. Bravo. Like everyone in America, you're entitled to your opinion(s) and entitled to stick with it/them.

Photo Credit: AP