Looking at the Unbeatens: Big 12

[DraftBoy]

Big 12:
Missouri (3-0)
Is anybody really surprised here? Chase Daniel picked up where he left off last year and is absolutely torching teams. There was some question about the loss of Micheal Rucker and how much that would effect teams but Chase Coffman has been very solid and Jeremy Maclin has emerged as an even bigger receving threat this year already having 4 touchdowns. Sophmore RB Derrick Washington has been running over teams and averaging 7.77 ypc. Junior LB Sean Weatherspoon has been the playmaker on defense for the Tigers either leading or being 2nd in every single statistical category.

Nebraska (3-0)
Has an undefeated Nebraska team ever been so quiet? Should it worry the rest of the Big 12? I honestly think so. QB Joe Ganz has shown why he was the best choice to be the QB as he has thrown for 5 TD and rushed for another. Granted having a RB like Marlon Lucky behind you helps immensely. Senior WR Nate Swift has come out of nowhere to become Ganz favorite target as the two have already hooked up for a pair TD tosses, and Sophmore TE Mike McNeil has become a serious threat down the field. Senior LB Cody Glenn has been a force on the cornhusker D leading the team in tackles and tackles for loss while Junior DT Ndamukong Suh leads the team in sacks.

Colorado (2-0)
The father son combination of the Hawkins has worked well early for the Buffaloes early on this year. Cody Hawkins has thrown 4 TDs to only 2 INTs and has emerged as a solid QB for the Buffs. All-Everything Freshman RB Darrell Scott has been a little slow to get going so far and he will need to pick it up. Colorado so far has benefited from an easy schedule thus far and faces a true test tonight v. West Virginia.

Oklahoma State (3-0)
After last years QB debacle that last year had Head Coach Mike Gundy yelling at reporters and led to Bobby Reid transferring to FCS Texas Southern, Cowboy fans were hoping that this season would be a big turnaround. So far QB Zac Robinson has been good for Oklahoma State throwing 4 TD’s and completing 69% of his passes. However the real playmaker that has emerged is Sophomore RB Kendall Hunter. Through three games he has 449 yards, 6 TD’s and over 8.0 ypc. Fellow Sophomore WR Dez Bryant has quickly become Robinson’s favorite target catching 3 of his 4 touchdown passes. Defensively Oklahoma State will have to get better in order for them to remain undefeated when the Big 12 schedule kicks off next weekend.

Oklahoma (3-0)
As good as Sam Bradford was last year as a Freshman, he has been even better as a Sophmore. So far he has thrown 12 TD’s, 2 INT’s, completed 79% of his throws, and has thrown for 882 yards. He has been the true leader of this team and has their utmost respect. The running combination of Junior Chris Brown and Sophomore Demeco Murray has racked up 553 yards, and 7 TD’s through 3 games and has provided a nice 1-2 punch to the air attack. Senior Juaquin Iglesias, Junior Jeramine Gresham, and Freshman Ryan Broyles have been the constant targets of Sam Bradford this year so far and have looked pretty much instoppable. On defense Oklahoma has been dominant but just lost DT DeMarcus Granger for at least 6 weeks, and maybe the entire season.

Texas (2-0)
Just when some people were ready to write off QB Colt McCoy he has come out firing with a vengeance and has reminded some of what they saw his Freshman year. McCoy has not only been the Texas gunslinger that everybody wanted him to be but he is also the leading rushing threat for the Longhorns so far also. McCoy has thrown and run for a combined 615 yards, and 8 TD’s. Senior WR’s Quan Crosby, and Jordan Shipley have both been more than able to replace the loss of Limas Sweed to the NFL. Texas is likely to be 5-0 headed into Dallas against Oklahoma which should be a game for the ages.

Texas Tech (3-0)
Graham Harrell has been…well Graham Harrell, while he only has 8 TD throws so far this season, he does lead in passing yards 1251 yards. This year though its not all on the arm of Harrell and the hands of Crabtree, Texas Tech has two good RB’s in Shannon Woods and Baron Batch. Speaking of All-Universe Sophomore WR Michael Crabtree has 24 receptions for 395 yards and 5 TD’s while being constantly targeted by opposing teams and facing double coverage. He is the real susprise though this year, Texas Tech can still score 50 points at will but now they can play a little D to go with it. Having forced 9 sacks, 16 tackles for loss, and 9 interceptions through just three games they are a team to watch out for in the Big 12.


Next: Big East

[LifetimeBillsFan]

I haven't seen all of these teams yet and will want to see them against a better level of competition than they have faced so far, but, having seen Oklahoma twice, I have to say that the stats of their stars don't really reflect how good the team really has been.

They are so deep at the skill positions and Bradford has been so efficient that there has been no need for their top RBs or WRs to really step up or even play all that much.

Both lines have been so dominant in the games that I have seen that I'm having a really hard time deciding who I think is best or the best prospect. The loss of Granger (who I think was the victim of a rather cheap hit) will hurt because he was really playing well. It will be interesting to see how well his replacement plays against a higher level of competition as the season progresses.

Colorado has two very good DTs. Hypolite gets the most press because he looks the part of a NFL DT. But, I wouldn't sleep on their other DT, Nicholas. In the games that I have seen (Colorado St. and WVU), he has played as well or better (I actually think somewhat better) than Hypolite. Nicholas is a Kyle Williams type player who could be a good pick-up for someone in the later rounds of the draft when he comes out.

[DraftBoy]

I haven't seen all of these teams yet and will want to see them against a better level of competition than they have faced so far, but, having seen Oklahoma twice, I have to say that the stats of their stars don't really reflect how good the team really has been.

They are so deep at the skill positions and Bradford has been so efficient that there has been no need for their top RBs or WRs to really step up or even play all that much.

Both lines have been so dominant in the games that I have seen that I'm having a really hard time deciding who I think is best or the best prospect. The loss of Granger (who I think was the victim of a rather cheap hit) will hurt because he was really playing well. It will be interesting to see how well his replacement plays against a higher level of competition as the season progresses.

Colorado has two very good DTs. Hypolite gets the most press because he looks the part of a NFL DT. But, I wouldn't sleep on their other DT, Nicholas. In the games that I have seen (Colorado St. and WVU), he has played as well or better (I actually think somewhat better) than Hypolite. Nicholas is a Kyle Williams type player who could be a good pick-up for someone in the later rounds of the draft when he comes out.


After watching Colorado last night take down West Virginia Im quite a bit more impressed with them and I agree with you that Nicholas may be more of a playmaker than Hypolite so far this year. One place I am concerned for them is at the RB position while they have two good freshman RB's in Stewart and Scott. Stewart is small and against good Big 12 defenses he won't be as as successful as he was last night v. West Virginia. Scott looks slow and hesitant to hit the holes which is a big red flag to me. Hawkins has the QB swagger you love in a quaterback and is so confident in his throws its fun to watch. Their playmaker at WR is Josh Smith who could be something special in a year or two. And he's only a sophomore. Teams better watch out for Colorado with a Sophomore QB, Sophomore WR, and three Freshman RB's (one was redshirted). This team is young offensively and developing together.

[LifetimeBillsFan]

After watching Colorado last night take down West Virginia Im quite a bit more impressed with them and I agree with you that Nicholas may be more of a playmaker than Hypolite so far this year. One place I am concerned for them is at the RB position while they have two good freshman RB's in Stewart and Scott. Stewart is small and against good Big 12 defenses he won't be as as successful as he was last night v. West Virginia. Scott looks slow and hesitant to hit the holes which is a big red flag to me. Hawkins has the QB swagger you love in a quaterback and is so confident in his throws its fun to watch. Their playmaker at WR is Josh Smith who could be something special in a year or two. And he's only a sophomore. Teams better watch out for Colorado with a Sophomore QB, Sophomore WR, and three Freshman RB's (one was redshirted). This team is young offensively and developing together.

Based on the two games I've seen, I would have to agree with your assessment.

I wasn't impressed with either of their RBs, although Scott does have some nice speed when he gets some space to run. I'm not sure if it is because they are not getting consistently good blocking from the line or the fact that they are inexperienced at this level, but I think you hit the nail on the head, especially about Scott. We'll have to see how they develop, right now they aren't much to write home about.

Smith has looked decent. Not special really. I'll want to see how he does against some of the better Big Eight teams. But, as you point out, he does seem to have the talent to become a pretty good player/prospect with more experience.

IMHO, Hawkins is a kid to watch. He's overshadowed, even in his own conference by the likes of Bradford, Daniel, McCoy and Reesing. And, while he may not have the talent or the team around him that some of the other top QBs have, he's not the starting QB at Colorado just because his father his the HC. It is still early in the season, but he looks to have improved noticeably over last season and, if he continues to develop, he could become the kind of QB who ends up being a mid-to-late round pick that develops into a solid back-up on the pro level (if he ends up in the right system).

Young Hawkins still needs to improve in certain areas to get to that point, though, and it will be interesting to see if he is able to do that within the confines of his father's offense and coaching (Colorado's HC is the coach who created the high-scoring Boise St. offense that produced the likes of J.Zabransky, etc.--it's very productive on the college level, but may not be the best preparation for a QB going into the NFL).