Four-down territory: early Pac-10 showdown

…Both UCLA and Stanford open Pac-10 play Saturday night while dealing with health issues at key positions. After missing most of fall camp because of a lower back injury, Bruins quarterback Kevin Prince returned to action for the team’s opener last weekend at Kansas State only to be hampered now by a bum shoulder. Prince has been limited in practice this week, with backup Richard Brehaut directing the team during the two-minute drill. Rich Neuheisel, however, said the third-year sophomore will be ready for the Cardinal at the Rose Bowl. Because of the soreness in the shoulder, he remained on a “pitch count” this week, according to the Bruins head coach.

However, even if Prince feels strong at game time, can he successfully direct the Bruins’ offense after showing a lot of rust last weekend in the loss at Kansas State? Even with some drops by his receivers, completing just 9 of 26 passes for 120 yards with two interceptions won’t get it done.

If he shows early rust, would you stick with Prince or turn the offense over to Brehaut, who has logged plenty of time with the first-teamers when Prince was sidelined in camp?

ICONWill Jeremy Stewart be ready to go against the Bruins?

Meanwhile, Stanford has health issues of its own, as running back Jeremy Stewart, receiver Chris Owusu and linebacker Shayne Skov are all battling injuries. Stewart is questionable after suffering an ankle injury last week against Sacramento State. He logged five carries for 21 yards and a touchdown in the win. If he is slowed, Stepfan Taylor, Tyler Gaffney and Usua Amanam will continue competing in head coach Jim Harbaugh’s game of running back roulette that has been taking place in Palo Alto post-Toby Gerhart. The Cardinal ran for 213 yards last week, although 54 of those were on a scamper by backup quarterback Alex Loukas. Expect Harbaugh to try to get the running game going no matter who is in the backfield, as the Bruins’ revamped front seven gave up 313 yards rushing last week to Daniel Thomas and Co.

In the Cardinal's opener, neither Owusu nor Skov played. Harbaugh isn’t inclined to disclose the nature of injuries, but he has dropped hints that both will play. While being one of quarterback Andrew Luck’s top targets, Owusu was also one of the country’s best kickoff returners last season. Skov is the Cardinal’s starting inside linebacker.

Stanford already has lost one player for the season — promising tight end Levine Toilolo, who tore the ACL in his right knee on the second play of the game against Sacramento State.

This Pac-10 opener is going under the radar nationally on “Monster Saturday,” but it holds plenty of intrigue and should be a solid game to cap off your football Saturday.

…I’ve tried to make a case that the loss of wide receiver A.J. Green for the next three games won’t hurt Georgia as much as one would think, but I’m coming up empty. While the Bulldogs were able to go 2-1 without his services in ’09, Green is a first-round talent who can make any quarterback — including new starter Aaron Murray — feel much more comfortable about the offense. Bulldogs head coach Mark Richt has said that not much will change schematically on offense, but you have to figure that the ‘Dawgs will lean a little more heavily on the running game, which is boosted this week with the return of Washaun Ealey from suspension. Tavarres King, who was slated to be the No. 2 receiver opposite Green, also returns this week to give the Bulldogs some added ammo against South Carolina. He’ll join 6-5 senior Kris Durham, who stepped up with five catches for 83 yards last week in Green’s absence, and a deep tight end unit to give Murray solid weapons in the passing game behind a solid offensive line.

Still, losing your team’s best offensive weapon for three games against tough league competition is a brutal blow for the Bulldogs. Does the presence of Durham or King prevent the Gamecocks from being extra aggressive now with Green out of the lineup? I don’t see it happening. Georgia is appealing the suspension, so we’ll see if it is reduced. But Green will be sidelined Saturday — and he will be missed.

ICONTaylor Martinez brings instant excitement to the Nebraska offense.

…A multi-dimensional, exciting offense in Lincoln this season? With redshirt freshman Taylor Martinez getting the nod as the Cornhuskers’ starting quarterback before the season opener, it looks like head coach Bo Pelini and his staff really are intent on scoring points and taking the pressure off the stout defense this season. Offensive coordinator Shawn Watson said the offense won’t be “vanilla” anymore, as he believes he finally has a variety of weapons for an unpredictable attack. Watson believes that if he spreads his playmakers across the field and isolates any one of them, there is a chance for the Huskers to produce a big play. Roy Helu and Rex Burkhead can do damage out of the backfield. Future first-round pick Niles Paul leads a receiving unit that includes Brandon Kinnie and Mike McNeill. All three will make it much easier for Martinez to be successful in the passing game.

And then there is the speed and running ability of the signal caller, as well.

Creativity. Playmaking. Explosiveness. Welcome to your 2010 offense Cornhusker Nation.

…Much has been made of Pittsburgh’s subpar effort against Utah in its opener last week, especially the lack of playmaking by the talented defense — specifically the line, which managed only one tackle for loss, no sacks and very few quarterback hurries. While the Utes’ quick-passing, spread attack had a lot to do with keeping the front four off balance, having two All-American candidates taken out of the game is cause for concern. The best defender on the team, senior defensive end Greg Romeus, didn’t have much of an impact, and Ron Musselman of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette writes that it may be because his back issues are worse than anyone is acknowledging. Sources told Musselman that Romeus, who missed most of fall camp but played more than 50 snaps in the loss, could be sidelined for a significant amount of time.

Panthers head coach Dave Wannstedt listed Romeus as “questionable” for Saturday’s game against New Hampshire and refused to comment further when asked specifically about the Big East co-defensive player of the year last season. Making matters worse, defensive line coach Greg Gattuso said that fellow end Jabaal Sheard was also banged up, which may not be such a factor this week given the competition but will undoubtedly be a factor as the team begins Big East play.

Follow me on Twitter at Miller_Dave or send your college football questions to dave.miller@nationalfootballpost.com

Click here to purchase the Total Access Pass / Fantasy Draft Guide from the NFP.

Comments

Add a Comment