Over-hyped in 2005, under-hyped in 2006, it appears the pendulum has swung back to over for the Wolverines in 2007. They're in the perfect over-hype position this year:
They beat expectations last year making any critics wary of rating them too low.
They return stars at the glamor positions of quarterback, tailback and wide receiver.
But Michigan is vulnerable because they also lost the some of the best players they've had on defense in some time:
The 6-2 Henne has a steady target in Manningham, who had 703 receiving yards a year ago.
"Mario Manningham is one of the more exciting football players that we've had since I've been at Michigan," Carr says.
Hart finished fifth in Heisman voting last year and is expected to be in contention again with Arkansas' Darren McFadden, runner-up in 2006 to Troy Smith of Ohio State, and West Virginia's Steve Slaton, who finished fourth.
Hart thought about entering the NFL draft after piling up 1,562 yards but says he decided to return because Long, an excellent run blocker and pass protector, opted to hold off on the draft.
"If Jake would have left, I would have left," Hart says. "He's that great of a player. He means that much to me."
Long, the Big Ten's offensive lineman of the year, says Hart's stance made him think harder about his decision.
"I was really excited about the team we were going to have this year," he says, adding that he wants to "perfect the littlest things in my game and have no questions" about readiness for the NFL.
The jury is out on Michigan's defense because of the loss of seven starters from 2006, including All-America cornerback Leon Hall, now suiting up for the Cincinnati Bengals. Carr is talking about playing true freshmen.
No one doubts the team's potency on offense.
"There's a lot of firepower in this offense right now," Hart says.
What about those 'other' offensive linemen?
ESPN also managed to write an entire article about Michigan without once mentioning those other guys
Thanks to Long's surprising decision, the Wolverines enter this season as favorites to win the Big Ten championship, something that has elluded them since Long's redshirt freshman season in 2004.
When Long, a 6-foot-7, 313-pound native of Lapeer, Mich., decided to return to school for his senior season, tailback Mike Hart and quarterback Chad Henne soon followed. That trio, along with receivers Mario Manningham and Adrian Arrington, gives Michigan what could potentially be one of the most explosive offenses in college football.
Michigan does return some fantastic talent on offense and faces a easier schedule than usual with ND and OSU down or in transition, but the difference between a typical Carr 3-loss year and a run at the national championship will be their defense, which must answer a lot of questions before it can be considered among the nation's elite.
West Virginia's schedule virtually assures them of a BCS bid this year and maybe the best shot at going undefeated, but that has nothing to do with this headline. West Virginia parties like no other according to the Princeton Review:
To the disappointment of school administrators _ and the pride of some students _ West Virginia University is No. 1 on The Princeton's Review's annual list of the top 20 party schools.
The school has made the list seven times in the past 15 years, despite efforts to curb underage drinking and rowdy behavior. But not since 1997 have the Mountaineers taken the top spot. Last year, WVU was No. 3, bested by the University of Texas at Austin and Penn State, both of which remain in the top 10 this year. WVU #1
Which reminds me of one of my favorite all-time headlines: West Virginia officials move to snuff out couch burning
COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — Fire officials in Morgantown, W.Va., have ordered the removal of all upholstered furniture, debris and flammable objects from porches in city neighborhoods with high West Virginia University student populations in an effort to put a damper on the outdoor furniture blazes that have become a tradition. he move comes as the city, known as the couch-burning capital of college football, prepares for the West Virginia-Virginia Tech game Saturday.
"The reason for the order is based upon statistical fire data gathered following major rival football games or other sporting events," Morgantown Fire Chief Dave Fetty said. "Data says there are particular areas ... where we can expect to have illegal street fires."
Students celebrating wins by the Mountaineers have a long tradition of setting street fires, often with cheap furniture dragged from their rental homes.
A report in Tuesday's Morgantown Dominion Post said the city led the nation with 1,129 intentional street fires set between 1997 and 2003.
Residents who don't comply with the order by Friday morning will be cited and their furniture hauled away.
As Bob Davie would say, it's getting time to play footbaw. Under TV Schedules on CFB360 we've added a cool new site that tracks the TV schedule week by week. Here's the breakdown for week one - not a lot of tilts on tap, with the best games looking like Tennesse-Cal, Notre Dame-Georgia Tech and FSU-Clemson on Monday night.
So, I had a little fun with the Cody Paul video, but College Football fans always want to know who 'the next' superstar will be - I'm no different. I'm not sure why this is more fun to do than appreciate who's already out there, but it seems to be human nature. So who'll be the next Bush, the guy who could turn any play into a highlight reel?
Bush is the most exciting player I've seen since Barry Sanders. Incredible speed and vision. Surprising power. And the thing that makes excellent backs great: body control. It's almost like Bush controlled his body with a joy stick. Here's a youtube highlight reel.
So who'll be the next Bush of the last two classes? After an exhaustive search (okay a few hours on the net)I've ranked the players who have a shot at becoming Bush II. Not that it's likely anyone will get there, but these guys look the most Bushesque.
The most obvious candidate will be wearing a USC uniform this year, Joe McKnight. McKnight averaged a just plain silly 14 yards a carry and 29 yards per punt return.
I don't know if you caught A&M's Michael Goodson this year, but he's a few milkshakes away from becoming a phenom. With skinnier arms than Michael Jackson he still had the ability to change games his freshmen year. Goodson has the 'could break it on any play' magic in his game. He almost looks like Ginn meets Bush. Now that I look at his video again, I'd give him the best shot at Bushdem.
CJ Spiller turned down all the big boys to play in Death Valley. And even though he's stuck wearing a uniform that looks like a little kids PJs, he has a chance to enter the Bush zone.
The only thing Oklahoma's Demarco Murray doesn't have is that top, top, top end speed. Other wise he's Reggie Murray.
Finally, a bit of a dark horse, Jahvid Best of California. There isn't much public video available on the kid (this is the best we have,) but he may have the most speed out of any of the 'Next Bush' candidates
Notre Dame's Armando Allen is another kid with blazing speed, but tough to put him here after missing his entire senior year. BTW, USC's running back parade is stomach turningly good.
