College football countdown...catch the IPT fever!

The Idaho Press-Tribune's Phil Dailey and Dave Southorn have embarked upon the daunting task of ranking all 120 Division 1-A teams before the season starts and, in so doing, have discovered the most awesome form of busy-work ever. How serious are they about the task? Serious enough to give the countdown its own personal website.



The countdown, which began with Western Kentucky and will hopefully end with Boise State, is already into the 90's, which typically means that half of the WAC would be mentioned by now. And sure enough, Utah State, Idaho, San Jose State, and NMSU have already been highlighted...or low-lighted, as it were. Here are some kind words the IPT guys had to say about the University of Idaho:

The season is a success if ... The team wins more than three games.

We thought #112 was a little high for the Vandals.

With nearly 100 more teams to go, there is still a lot of intrigue left in the countdown. For instance, will Phil Dailey's love for Louisiana Tech propel the Bulldogs ahead of Nevada where they probably do not belong? Is there any way that Dave Southorn does not vote Colorado #1? How does William Love fit into all of this? Are the IPT rankings part of the BCS formula? Will a conflict of interest prevent them from voting for Boise State? Is this whole thing an excuse to write off Southorn's preview magazine purchases at Barnes & Noble?

And most importantly, what will happen to the College Football Countdown once there is no college football left to count down? We're just praying that the Women's College Basketball Countdown is not in the works.

College Football Countdown [Press-Tribune]

OBNUG Hall of Fame: Ian Johnson inducted

 

Congratulations to Ian Johnson and his Oregon State TD extravaganza for gaining induction into the OBNUG Hall of Fame. His performance earned 91 percent of the vote, which was well over the 70 percent needed to get in. Thanks again to Drew from Fight Fight BSU for stating his case so eloquently.

Johnson's induction signals the end of the first year of the OBNUG Hall of Fame. Thank you to all who contributed nominees, wrote stories, and voted in the polls. We're looking forward to doing this again next year, so keep in mind any candidates you feel deserve to be in the HOF and feel free to let us know.

Here is the inaugural class of the OBNUG Hall of Fame:

• Marty Tadman's Fiesta Bowl
• Ryan Dinwiddie's three quarters versus Fresno State
• The 1980 Division I-AA championship game
• The day Boise State moved up to Division 1-A
• The three plays to win the Fiesta Bowl: hook-and-ladder, Perretta TD toss, and Statue of Liberty
• Ian Johnson's Oregon State romp

The shrine in our master bedroom's armoire does not do these moments justice.

Thursday: Links with religion

Story of the day:

Peak redeems itself with Jadon Dailey [Statesman]

With the hiring of former BSU center Jadon Dailey as the new color commentator for Bronco football games, Peak Broadcasting has done something that has thus far eluded them: appear competent. If the reaction to Dailey's hiring is any indication, then Bronco fans are feeling pretty good about life after Paul J.--at least as good as they could feel.

Bob Behler's already a fan.

Behler, who said he has worked with many first-timers in the booth, was impressed with Dailey's intelligence and enthusiasm. "He's going to add a lot in stories and knowledge," Behler said. "He's going to help me a heck of a lot, knowing personnel, history and coaches. He's going to bring a lot to the table."

Will Dailey's lack of experience be an issue? Not with Behler, the father of modern radio, in the booth! Besides, if things get bad, Peak can always just play snippets of Dailey's Out of the Blue commentary in between Behler's live-action play-by-play calls. Don't think anyone would mind that. 

Other links:

New recruit Mooney not taking other campus visits after all [Press-Tribune]
Guess he was okay missing out on all the fun times at Army.

Bush Hamdan is a better man than you are [Scott Slant]
Thanks to Tom Scott we suddenly feel much less charitable for giving that homeless guy a dollar.

Boise State season preview [Don Best]
Always trust a man with a mustache...except for Robb Akey.

Cocaine hoax fuels Big XII rivalry [SI.com]
We anxiously await the Idaho "pirated Norbit DVD" hoax.

NCAA officiating test will rock you hard

God bless those NCAA officials.

Thanks to CBS Sportsline's Dennis Dodd, we found out about a test for football referees that was equal parts humiliating and impossible. The 100-question beast of an exam is designed to test officials on the minutiae of the NCAA rulebook, but all it really does is emasculate and discourage. Try it for yourself at USAFootball.com or better yet, don't and save yourself two hours and a migraine. Here is a taste of the carnage:

40. 4th & 10 on A's 20. The score is tied. Team A's punt is illegally touched by a Team A player on B's 42, then picked up on B's 39 by a Team B player who runs five yards and fumbles. Team A recovers and picks up the fumble dragging a defender to Team B's goal line between the hash marks. The covering official signals a touchdown. During Team A's run, a Team B player has an incidental facemask in making the tackle. 4-seconds remain in the 4th quarter. Replay shows the Team A runner was downed on B's 1/2. Team B is coming out of the huddle to snap the ball on B's 42. Clock? Reviewable?


A. A 1/goal B-1/4. The clock starts on the snap. The play is reviewable.
B. A 1/goal B-1/2. The clock starts on the snap. The play is reviewable.
C. B 1/10 @ B42. The incidental facemask is not a foul.

We had to break out the graphing calculator for that one!

Of course, we should probably just be proud that we finished. Odds were good that we would have given up halfway between clock rules on illegal forward passes and penalty yardage on inadvertent whistle facemasks. But we made it through. And we didn't completely embarrass ourselves.

OBNUG's score: 57.

While it's true that getting 57 out of 100 is failing no matter which way you slice it, we were pretty proud of ourselves considering we did better than some of the big hitters in the college football media.

• Dennis Dodd: 48
• Sunday Morning QB: 55
• AOL's Adam Jacobi: 55

Nothing like some relativity to spruce up a score.

We're curious to see how you, our readers, would do on the test (and we want someone to commiserate with). You can take the test online by clicking here, or you can download the pdf here. Good luck. And don't say we didn't warn you.

NCAA Football test [USA Football]

Jadon Dailey your new Bronco color commentator

Former Boise State center Jadon Dailey will be joining Bob Behler in the KIDO booth this fall.

Idaho Radio News has the scoop:

“The addition of Jadon to our broadcast team will add an insight unique to the Broncos,” Peak Broadcasting’s SVP Kevin Godwin said in a prepared statement. “His recent experience with this team will provide listeners with a vivid description of all the action from start to finish.”

Dailey was excellent on the Out of the Blue documentary, and he should bring a lot of fun to the radio broadcasts. Congratulations, Jadon.

We wonder if the Statesman will ask him if he saw the Fiesta Bowl?

Dailey named new color guy for BSU games [Idaho Radio News]

Wednesday: Links with girth

Story of the day: 

A veritable Who's Who at WAC media days [Press-Tribune]

The WAC Football Preview (motto: Salt Lake City sure is nice, isn't it?) is two weeks away, and while we bloggers patiently wait for our tickets to arrive, Dave Southorn of the Idaho Press-Tribune has the scoop on which players will be in attendance.

Boise State-Ian Johnson, RB and Mike T. Williams, DE 
Fresno State-Tom Brandstater, QB and Bear Pascoe, TE
Hawai‘i-Adam Leonard, LB and Solomon Elimimian, LB
Idaho-Shiloh Keo, S, and Adam Korby, C
Louisiana Tech-Patrick Jackson, RB and Weldon Brown, DB
Nevada-Luke Lippincott, RB and Mundrae Clifton, DL
New Mexico State-Chase Holbrook, QB and Davon House, DB
San Jose State-Jarron Gilbert, DE
Utah State-Jake Hutton, LB and Derek Hoke, OT

Good choices by the Broncos. Everyone will love to see Ian Johnson doing Ian Johnson things, and Mike T. Williams should get a chance to explain to people who he is. We're curious if Bush Hamdan got an invite but had to turn it down based on the inherent evil of a "media convention."

As for the rest of the WAC, Fresno State couldn't have chosen two more typical players; way to think outside of the box, hosers. And San Jose State is only bringing one player? We thought if any school was short on interesting players it would have been Idaho. 

Other links:

Murphy: is BSU recruiting too young? [Statesman]
We're not even going to touch this one.

Early commitments are not Tom Scott's cup of tea [Scott Slant]
Derek Schoumann is, though.

Players aren't the only ones reneging on commitments [SI.com]
Tom Scott would probably hate this article.

SJSU linebacker punches friend, sent to jail [ESPN.com]
Details weren't available, but Guitar Hero probably figured prominently.

Someone give Utah State a hug! [Bleacher Report]
And a 20-point handicap in non-conference games!

Fresno State #23 in Rivals countdown [Rivals]
Let the disappointing begin.

Dan Hawkins stands up for student athletes [Rivals]
So long as they aren't playing intramurals.

"Who is this year's Hawaii" and other disastrous distinctions

Non-BCS contenders hoping to make a name for themselves on the national stage need look no further than the example set by...Hawaii?

At media outlets across the country, the question of "Who is the next Boise State" has devolved into "Who is the next Hawaii," despite the fact that the questions carry nowhere near the same connotation. Boise State won the Fiesta Bowl. Hawaii choked away the Sugar Bowl. Boise State struck a blow for the little guy. Hawaii reminded everyone why WAC schools aren't usually invite to BCS functions.

If we're asking the question of "Who is this year's Hawaii," shouldn't we be asking the follow-up question of "Does anyone even want to be this year's Hawaii?" The way we remember it, the Warriors barely went undefeated against their cupcake regular season schedule, were chosen by the BCS out of default and obligation, laid a giant egg in the Sugar Bowl, then saw every important person on the team leave the program. Not exactly the way you want to build sustained success.

Scout.com was the latest to ask the question, and they had some interesting, if not unwilling candidates.

BYU, Utah, Tulsa, Southern Mississippi, Boise State.

Here's what they had to say about the Broncos:

Autzen is a nightmare no matter when you play there, but the Ducks are replacing Dennis Dixon and Jonathan Stewart in the backfield. The Broncos are going there at the right time if there really is one, and this is a very experienced team. The game in Hattiesburg pits two of the best NBCS teams in the country, and Fresno State coming north to close out the season will likely decide the WAC champion.

We're sure that the media means well when it asks about the "next Hawaii," but assuming that the Warriors and the Broncos had similar experiences over the past two years is completely wrong. If people don't understand that, then it could be only a matter of time before we see some equally uncomfortable questions.

• Who is the next Maurice Clarett?
• Who is the next Bobby Petrino?
• When is the next USC recruiting scandal?
• Who is the next Chase Holbrook?
• What is the next 2k Sports Las Vegas Bowl?
• What are the next Oregon uniforms?
• Who will be the next Big Ten champion?
• What is the next Robb Akey mustache?

Some questions are best left unanswered.

Blog...Who is the next Hawai'i? [Scout.com]