The beautiful optimism of fall camp will give way to the tragic reality of the regular season before long, so WAC teams better enjoy it while it lasts.
Rest assured, they are. Here is a sampling of the high hopes at WAC schools across the country.
New Mexico State
Our favorite out-of-touch fanbase has some pretty unfounded expectations this season. But what's new, right?
The Aggies are expecting to make it to a bowl game this season. We think the Aggies will win between seven and nine games this season including a sweep of rivals UNM and UTEP which is something they haven't done since the 2002 season
We're not entirely sure who is expecting them to make a bowl game other than Hal Mumme, Hal Mumme's immediate family, the webmasters at holbrook4heisman.com, and crazy people.
We always pictured Spartan head coach Dick Tomey as a sensible person, but even he can't help but get caught up in the kiddie-pool-wave of excitement surrounding his program.
Coach Dick Tomey, entering his fourth season at SJSU, said. "This should be our best team."
The Bulldogs are throwing a Fan Fest on August 10th to celebrate success that hasn't happened yet. We did the same thing when we threw a premature Prom Date Fest in high school.
Tech fans will have an opportunity to meet and greet this year’s players, coaches and administrators during the two-hour event while obtaining autographs and pictures. Numerous activities will be available for youngsters, such as games, face painting and more.
We imagine that the more includes arm wrestling with Derek Dooley, a Taylor Bennett dunk tank, and a petting zoo.
This week, Utah State quarterback Jase McCormick quit the team, leaving senior Sean Setzer as the leader in the Aggies' quarterback derby. Perhaps Setzer's joy over this news has adversely affected his decision-making.
"I think we can be really good this season," senior quarterback Sean Setzer said. "We have a lot of weapons; we have to play with more discipline so we can win the close games. But I definitely think we've made a big improvement over last season."
Previewing the WAC seems like a good job for an intern. Unfortunately, we do not have an intern. Ugh. Previously: San Jose State. Today: Louisiana Tech
Louisiana Tech
Motto: Just Dooley it
The Louisiana Tech Bulldogs are the trendy pick to surprise people in the WAC this season. But does anyone know why?
The Bulldogs certainly don't instill confidence with their outstanding offense. They are not revolutionary in their approach to special teams. Their defense is not suddenly good. No, most people are basing their sudden optimism on two things.
Derek Dooley.
Not sucking as much as usual last year.
Sadly, the WAC has come to this.
Five questions
Taylor Bennett. Thoughts?
If the Bulldogs were going for mediocre, semi-competent, vanilla quarterbacks with so-so arm strength and accuracy, then they hit the nail on the head. In fact, Bennett and last year's starter Zac Champion could very well be the same person, right down to the yuppy first names. But is Bennett ordinary enough?
Not yet, apparently. The Georgia Tech transfer is currently sitting at No. 2 on the depth chart to sophomore Ross Jenkins. Bennett will have to start misreading routes and throwing behind receivers pretty soon if he wants to get the job.
Are you drinking Derek Dooley's Kool-Aid?
Derek Dooley's Kool-Aid is more like a mojito of energy and positivity, and there is plenty for everyone. The head coach/athletic director/campus tour coordinator has Ruston buzzing with the anticipation of a .500 season and a berth in an obscure bowl game. Isn't college football great?
But as far as we're concerned, Dooley's shtick isn't doing it for us. We can't help but get this vibe when we hear his name:
No matter how he spins things, Louisiana Tech will always be Louisiana Tech--that is to say, they will always be mostly above average.So if Dooley has that flavor of Kool-Aid, then we'd be more than happy to drink it.
Describe the LaTech defense using only adverbs.
Disjointedly. Awfully. Tragically. Unwittingly. Openly. Unfortunately.
Will Patrick Jackson matter in three months?
LaTech's senior running back will have to matter for the Bulldogs to be successful. Though he has never rushed for more than 1,000 yards in a season, he is always good for about four yards a carry, especially when Idaho is in town, and he and his fellow running backs will be the best part of the offense for the foreseeable future.
The good news is that the LaTech offensive line returns three starters from a year ago. The bad news is that both tackles are gone. Hope you like dive plays. We get the feeling that Jackson will find the going pretty tough this year, and he'll be forgotten about once backup Daniel Porter breaks a few 70-yard touchdown runs. Also, we doubt that will take three months.
What's going to happen when LaTech comes to town?
We don't usually get nervous about Louisiana Tech visiting Boise. That's kind of like the U.S. worrying about border safety with Canada. But this year might be different. Rather than the traditional Saturday kickoff, the Bulldogs will be in Boise on a Wednesday night. And the game is practically in September.
We worry that the Broncos will still be working out the kinks when LaTech comes on October 1st. We worry that Derek Dooley will look into our eyes and see straight to our souls. We worry that the Broncos may only win by four touchdowns.
And then we wake up and realize it was all just a dream. There's really nothing to worry about.
Over/Unders
+/-5, the number of times we fall asleep watching LaTech games this year
+/-0, Derek Dooley's Q rating
+/-450, rushing yards given up to Nevada
+/-11, times Taylor Bennett tries one of these, only with much less success and many more turnovers:
Jumping on the LaTech bandwagon is the new black. "They're cool! They're hip! They are geographically indifferent to their own conference!" Well, we're not buying it.
The reign of Derek Dooley might have gotten off to a good start, but let's look at the facts. In 2006, the Bulldogs finished 1-7 in the conference with losses to Idaho, NMSU, and San Jose State. In 2007, the Bulldogs were 4-4 in the WAC with wins over the same schools. There is a big difference between beating bad teams and being a good team. Basically, all LaTech did last year was win against four of the worst teams in the country, and we have a hard time placing our trust in a program that has, to this point, only proven their lack of awfulness. Beat Fresno State or Hawaii and then we can talk.
Perfect situation:
Taylor Bennett wins the starting quarterback job, the offense finds balance, the defense is allowed a "three-mississippi" head start on all pass plays, the Bulldogs win the WAC and go to the Hawaii Bowl, and Derek Dooley names himself King of Louisiana
Reality:
Taylor Bennett wins the starting quarterback job, proceeds to be not all that good, the defensive line forgets to show up for multiple games, Bulldogs somehow finish 5-3 in the WAC, media members write articles about how right they were in picking LaTech as a sleeper, Derek Dooley gives himself a promotion
WAC coaches favor, ignore early signing period [Statesman]
Much has been made of the proposal of an early signing period for college football. Strangely enough, even the WAC seems interested
"I'm 100 percent for it," Louisiana Tech coach Derek Dooley said. "You would save some money so you don't have to keep seeing guys and babysit and prevent the negative recruiting that comes after a commitment. It would prevent (other) schools from getting in and trying to confuse and manipulate."
The news is strange considering that there have been hardly any early commitments in the conference outside of the nine from Boise State. What difference would an early signing period make then? Do WAC schools enjoy not meeting deadlines? Are they in a rush to be turned down? Are they hoping impressionable high school kids would be more akin to bad decisions earlier in the year?
Of course, not everyone is thrilled about an early signing period, although the issue with this particular program might be its anathema to recruiting in general.
"I still like to evaluate kids during their senior year," Utah State coach Brent Guy said. "I want to see a guy get better from his junior to senior year and keep improving. I wouldn't use it."
Adding, "I hardly use the one we have now!"
Other links:
Clady's contract worth $17.5 million [AP]
$11.5 in guarantees, one wild night at Six Flags Denver.
BSU schedule featured on Wiz of Odds [Wizard of Odds]
Complete with predictable Ian Johnson age joke.
The Life Coach believes that there are no stupid questions, just stupid Vandal fans who ask questions. His purpose is to shepherd Bronco Nation to the calm waters of illumination, guiding them through their perfunctory problems with grace, flair, and competent advice. Got a question for the Life Coach? Email him at OneBroncoNationUnderGod@gmail.com.
Life Coach,
I'm curious. If the Broncos are running the "Q" offense, then what offense is Louisiana Tech running?
Intrigued in Idaho City
Good question, friend. Louisiana Tech's offense is the Chinese character for slothfulness, which looks kind of like a panda captaining a sailboat. Occasionally, they'll switch to running the “lowercase u” offense: an obvious homage to the fact that their offense always comes behind BSU’s.
Dear Life Coach,
Do you have Oregon tickets?
Desperate in Driggs
I am one of the lucky few to have some Oregon tickets, and I didn’t have to be a prominent BSU booster or win a ticket in the lottery, either. How did I do it? Let me tell you.
I guess Phil Knight and Nike thought it would be a good idea for Oregon to wear a different jersey design for each quarter during the game, so they had a contest for fans to send in their design ideas with the winner getting tickets to the game. Lo and behold, my design won! So I will be there on the 50 yard line to see the Ducks in their tapestry green with ruffles and lace. What a third quarter that will be!
If you still need tickets, I hear they might be looking for an overtime jersey design.
Mr. Life Coach,
If KTIK stands for “the Ticket,” then what does KIDO stand for?
Sincerely, Bob Behler
If KTIK is the “the Ticket,” then KIDO should have the nickname of “the Program.” If KTIK can get you in the door with “the Ticket”, then KIDO would be the “the Program” that you get at the door that gives you all of the information for what is going on there. KIDO is newsy like that.
Although, if this nickname sticks, they will probably have to change their call letters to KPRG, which doesn't quite roll of the tongue as easily.
The new LaTech logo is here and it is...exactly the same as the old one. See for yourself:
NEWOLD
In a sense, we are kind of relieved. The traditional LaTech logo is a classic, and we were a little worried that the modern, edgy version was going to be some sort of interpretation of a Bulldog cooking Creole cuisine or Derek Dooley wrestling with the state of Louisiana. Thankfully, taste won out.
Yet while the "T" logo may have remained the same, not all Tech paraphernalia avoided the Queer Eye treatment. Here's the new Bulldog logo, which at least looks better than this and this.
According to a Yahoo! story, the dog design is supposed to represent "the class, discipline and competitive strength that embodies all of (LaTech's) teams and student-athletes." Don't know about that, but we do think the logo looks an awful lot like Otto, the dog from the Beetle Bailey cartoon.
Last but not least, the Bulldogs created an entire "LaTech font" based on the "T" in their traditional logo. We're still trying to decide if this is nerdy, exciting, or a waste of resources. We're leaning toward the latter.
The WAC just wasn't the same without a Carr at Fresno State.Derek Carr, younger brother of overhyped Fresno star David, will be joining the Bulldogs after high school, and opportunistic WAC defenses couldn't be happier.
Derek Carr, brother of David, the first overall player selected by the Houston Texans in the 2002 NFL draft, told us recently his older brother had a major influence on his quarterback development, which is obvious by his quick release and sound mechanics.
The elder Carr also taught little bro how to take a sack 76 times in one season.
We project Derek will blossom in the latter half of his college career like his brother and fit just as smoothly in the Bulldogs' system.
Former Boise State reneger Taylor Bennett will be transferring from Georgia Tech to Louisiana Tech this season, and he will be eligible to start at quarterback for the Bulldogs.
Normally, a student-athlete transferring from one Division I-A program to another would have to sit out a year, but Louisiana Tech has a graduate-school major that Georgia Tech does not, so the NCAA approved Bennett's eligibility request on academic grounds.
Bennett once gave Boise State a verbal commitment, but he chose instead to play at Georgia Tech. In addition to his wanting a graduate degree, he also did not want anything to do with the spread option offense that new coach Paul Johnson was introducing. Apparently, Bennett prefers the staid, three-and-out offense of Louisiana Tech.
Utah State The Aggies are halfway through their spring practices, and head coach Brent Guy is predictably optimistic.
"The main thing was that it was much more physical than in years past because of our numbers; we have a lot more guys to get in there and we were able to get quite a few live snaps in," said Guy.
New Mexico State NMSU will become the final WAC team to open spring practice, when they kick things off later today. The last shall be first? We doubt it.
Aggie football gears up for first spring practice [NMSU athletics]
Idaho In addition to oily team-building, the Vandals have lots of work to on the football field during spring practice.
"That’s the one thing we really need to work on," Enderle said, "finishing our drives and getting in the end zone.”
"Also, pretty much every other aspect of football," he continued.
Fresno State When Kansas State pulled out of the Bulldogs' 2008 schedule, Fresno replaced the Wildcats with Big East power Rutgers. The Fresno-Rutgers season opener will take place on Labor Day, and the Scarlet Knights will return in 2012 to take on the Bulldogs in Fresno.
Gene Bleymaier is hard at work replacing Idaho State with ITT Tech.
LaTech Something is going on at Louisiana Tech's spring practice, but we're not sure what exactly that is.
Following Saturday's first scrimmage of spring workouts, the Bulldogs focus was on improving and building a brand of Louisiana Tech football Monday. Head coach Derek Dooley told his players when each of them earns respect from the opponent the team will have an identity as a strong football program.
Louisiana Tech and Utah State have named new athletic directors, and each has his sights set on the schools' football programs.
The LaTech Bulldogs hired head football coach Derek Dooley (pictured) to take over the athletic director duties, despite Dooley not having any experience in the position. Did Buddy Garrity have a hand in this?
Utah State showed more sense in its hiring of Scott Barnes, most recently an assistant AD at the University of Washington. Barnes is committed to building the football program, which is a good sign for the WAC and a bad sign for unathletic high school football players from the state of Utah who were hoping for a scholarship.
This week, OBNUG will be grading the recruiting classes for each WAC team. Our research may be spotty, but as you can see from the final result, there is no questioning our loyalty.
Louisiana Tech
Putting the "Eastern" in "Western Athletic Conference," Louisiana Tech has an entirely different recruiting experience than most WAC schools. Stuck between SEC and Big 12 country, the Bulldogs have a lot to deal with in terms of competition for recruits. Although, they seem to be having trouble from places you wouldn't necessarily expect.
"It was pretty apparent we were recruiting the right guys,” head coach Derek Dooley said. “If you look at the last two weeks, it was an absolute assault on our entire commitment list by some quality programs. That’s great news. I think that’s a good sign.”
Solid verbal commitments for Louisiana Tech were pursued, and in some cases lost, to Texas Christian, Southern Methodist, Tulsa, Southern Miss and Memphis.
Memphis? Do they even play football there? And Southern Methodist? Would that be 1-11 Southern Methodist? Those Conference USA teams are cutthroat, man.
Regardless, the Bulldogs did have people sign with them. Not playmakers, mind you, but people nonetheless. The relative big names were on defense as coach Derek Dooley focused a second consecutive class on being able to stop potent WAC offenses. This is the point in the story where we feel obligated to tell you that LaTech barely averaged 20 points per game last year.
The Bulldogs' best signing was LB Eric Harper. Unless he scores points with tackles, we don't see how he is going to help.
Scout.com rank: 91 Rivals.com rank: 75 OBNUG grade: F
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