Amateur Status College Basketball Big East Preview

Since the Big East decided to form a basketball mega conference. I have had to constatnly reminded people that this is nothing like we have ever seen before in college basketball. The current incarnation of the Big East is the best conference in the HISTORY of college basketball...and I challenge anyone to make a case against that statement. The 11th best team in this conference would contend for a conference championship in the SEC or the Pac-10...and that isn't being said as an insult to those conferences. The Big East is that good...and the players know it. Is there any conference tournament with the atmosphere of the Big East. That's because the Big East is the best group of 16 teams your going to see until the Sweet 16 in mid March. 

Big East Rankings
1.Villanova Wildcats
2. West Virginia Mountaineers 
3. Georgetown Hoyas
4. Connecticut Huskies
5. Notre Dame Fighting Irish 
6. Louisville Cardinals
7. Cincinnati Bearcats 
8. Pittsburgh Panthers 
9. Syracuse Orange
10. St. John's Red Storm
11.  Seton Hall Pirates
12. Marquette Golden Eagles
13. Providence Friars
14. Rutgers Scarlet Knights
15. USF Bulls
16. DePaul Blue Demons

All-Big East Team
F - Luke Harangody (Notre Dame)
G - Scottie Reynolds (Villanova)
F - Greg Monroe (Georgetown)
G - Deonta Vaughn (Cincinnati)
G - Kemba Walker (Connecticut)
F - Samardo Samuels (Louisville)
G - Mike Rosario (Rutgers)
G - Jeremy Hazell (Seton Hall)
F - Da'Sean Butler (West Virginia)
F - Devin Ebanks (WestVirginia)
F - Mac Koshwal (DePaul)
F - Lazar Hayward (Marquette)


Big East All-Rookie Team
G - Lance Stephenson (Cincinnati)
G - Peyton Siva (Louisville)
F  - Dante Taylor (Pittsburgh)
G - Dwight Hardy* (St. John's)
G - Dominic Cheek (Villanova)
G - Maalik Wayns (Villanova)
G - Casey Mitchell (West Virginia)
G - Junior Cadougan (Marquette)
F - Mouphtaou Yarou (Villanova)
*JUCO Transfer

Why Rich...Why?

One of the more interesting storylines of this young college football season has been the play of the Michigan Wolverines true freshman quarterback Tate Forcier. Forcier, a California native, enrolled at the University of Michigan in January and quickly wrestled the starting job away from incompetent incumbent Nick Sheridan. Forcier was essentially the man at quarterback since day one, and he did not disappoint once the season began.  Half way through his freshman season, Forcier has continually been lauded for his poise and confidence. He has already engineered thrilling 4^th quarter comebacks against Notre Dame, Indiana, and Michigan St. (a game they would lose in overtime). So when the Wolverines trailed (12) Iowa by nine in the fourth quarter of their primetime matchup. I much like everyone else who bleeds Michigan Blue (I grew up in Michigan) expected more heroics from the freshman some have simply began to call “The Force”. Unfortunately, “The Force” was never unleashed down the stretch against the Hawkeyes. Beleaguered Michigan head coach Rich Rodriguez decided to bench his star freshman in favor of another highly touted freshman, Denard Robinson, a lightning quick run first quarterback from Florida who goes by the name “Shoelaces” (a tribute to his affinity for playing with untied shoes). Rodriguez was understandably disappointed with his freshman starter after a 4^th quarter drive began with a delay of game penalty and was executed terribly by Forcier and the Wolves were forced to punt after three downs. He responded by turning to Robinson, a move he has made often to ignite the Michigan offense if it becomes stagnant. As it often has this year, the switch to Robinson delivered immediate dividends. Shoelaces methodically scooted down the field for a touchdown against a tired Hawkeyes defense. After the Michigan defense forced Iowa to punt, I was sure that Forcier would return to provide more 4^th quarter magic. Forcier, a gifted athlete who is talented on the run as well and a much more polished passer than Robinson, was seemingly born for two minute drill situations. So please imagine my surprise when “Shoelaces” ran onto the field for the Wolverines last chance at staying in the race for the Big Ten title. Forcier, already proven in such situations, remained on the sideline. Robinson, who does have a very impressive arm, is still terribly one dimensional at this point in his career. He showed his immaturity by failing to see a wide receiver open on the sidelines on the second play of the drive. Instead of hitting Martavious Odoms for a gain of maybe twenty yards and a stoppage of the clock, Robinson overthrew a pass forced into coverage. The pass was intercepted and the game was over. Robinson was visibly distraught by his decision, but he should not blame himself. He was put in a position to fail by his head coach. I can assure you that when Michigan goes over there two minute offense in practice…Tate Forcier is not sitting on the sidelines. Rich Rodriguez, in an attempt to chastise his freshman starter for a bad drive (and maybe even a bad attitude afterwards), may have ruined the confidence of both his starter and his backup. The quarterback situation at Michigan will be a ongoing story for years to come. Forcier and Robinson are both true freshman and Michigan has a solid commitment (if there is such a thing anymore) from the #1 high school signal caller in the country, Michigan native Devin Gardner. I’m interested to see how Rich Rodriguez handles his quarterback situation through the rest of this year and the years to come. I for one think that he has already gotten off to a bad start.

Heisman Watch (Week 6)

There is only one addition to the list of five candidates from last week's addition of the Heisman Watch. But statistically, he could be the favorite. Welcome Texas wide receiver Jordan Shipley to the list after his 11 catch performance against Colorado that included a TD on both offense and special teams. Shipley has been the front runner for the Biletnikoff Award for so long that it only seems right that he eventually ease his way into the Heisman race. He is a significantly better candidate than the fraudalent Jimmy Clausen, who is receiving most of his Heisman hype from the Notre Dame media machine while Golden Tate (a member of my Heisman Watch list) does the heavy lifting. The list of Heisman candidates has grown to six and does not even include the current owner of the trophy (If you want love from Amateur Status...you got to beat Texas next week). Here's a rundown.

• Tim Tebow was less than impressive in a 13-3 victory over (4)LSU.
• Colt McCoy looked less than stellar before (3)Texas came back from down 11 early to throttle Colorado.
• Tony Pike and Golden Tate both had bye weeks
• Case Keenum got the win and the 400 yards he needed to stay relevant in this conversation. He must continue to provide fans with ridiculous statistical outputs to stay on the minds of voters.

Jordan Shipley (Sr.) Wide Receiver - Texas
47 Receptions
583 Receiving Yards
3 Touchdowns
1 Kick Return TD

Say hello to the new guy...Jordan Shipley!

Amateur Status Top 25 (Week 6)

Here at Amateur Status I don't waste time when it comes to putting out my Top 25. As soon as the last game is over, I go to work on the next poll. So here it is...

1. Alabama Crimson Tide (6-0)
2. Florida Gators (6-0)
3. Texas Longhorns (6-0)
4. Cincinnati Bearcats (5-0)
5. Boise State Broncos (6-0) 
6. Iowa Hawkeyes (6-0)
7. Virginia Tech Hokies (5-1)
8. TCU Horned Frogs (5-0)
9. Oregon Ducks (5-1)
10. USC Trojans (4-1)
11. LSU (5-1)
12. Miami Hurricanes (4-1)
13. Ohio St. Buckeyes (5-1)
14. Kansas Jayhawks (6-0)
15. Penn State Nittany Lions (5-1)
16. Oklahoma State Cowboys (5-1)
17. USF Bulls (5-0)
18. South Carolina Gamecocks (5-1)
19. Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (5-1)
20. Wisconsin Badgers (5-1)
21. Auburn Tigers (5-1)
22. BYU Cougars (5-1)
23. Houston Cougars (4-1)
24. Pittsburgh Panthers (5-1)
T-25. Utah Utes (4-1)
T-25. Central Michigan (5-1)




Lots of new names on the Top 25 list. (25)CMU may stay in this poll for a while. I don't think the Chips will lose a game the rest of the year. Oklahoma still won't be receiving any love from this poll. It is way to early for a Top 25 team to have two losses...injuries be darned. There are too many teams that are having good seasons right now. If Bradford can engineer a Red River Shootout victory...you'll see him and the Sooners in the poll.