Thanks to My Opinion on Sports, who is hosting the BlogPoll Roundtable, Mid-Season edition. Here we go:
1. Which coaches are clearly on the hot seat at this point? Who is surprisingly not?
John L. Smith, who has surely spent his entire existence devising myriad methods of distinguishing himself from the masses, say, by insisting on the use of his middle initial, which really is the equivalent of adding one chocolate chip to a pint of vanilla, and my, wasn't that a long sentence that didn't get close to the point? L. will not resign, nor will he be fired. No, he will go out in style, completing the journey of self-abuse commenced last year when he verbally berated himself:
This year, he has taken to physically slapping himself, and by season's end, I fully expect him to fire himself on ESPN.
All talk of the temperature of Phillip Fulmer's backside ceased after he righted the ship by whoopin' Cal. Since then, he has turned an aircraft carrier on a dime and forged full speed ahead in the polar-opposite direction.
2. Pick three of the undefeated teams and state your case as to why they won't run the table.
Rutgers will not get by both (or either for that matter) Louisville and West Virginia. USC's tendency toward playing close games will eventually bite them, probably at least by the time the Cal game rolls around. That leaves choosing one more from the group of Boise State, Michigan, Ohio State, West Virginia, and Louisville. Boise's a runt, but they only play other runts, so who knows? Two of the remaining Big Four will go down in head-to-head match ups. Any of them can win, but I think that the longest odds belong to Louisville.
3. Which conference is playing the best football right now?
The S.E.C. Tennessee, Auburn, Florida, LSU, and Arkansas are all in the top 15. So there.
4. Which team is playing above and beyond your expectations this season?
Tennessee. I was actually optimistic after The Season of Which We Do Not Speak, and I was hopeful that Erik Ainge could improve under the tutelage of David Cutcliffe. Even in my most optimistic moments, however, I did not foresee a thrashing of Cal, an offensive juggernaut, a national top ten passing efficiency, or 51 points on Georgia in Athens.
5. Which team is crashing and burning in regards to your expectations?
I picked Georgia to win the SEC East because I thought they would beat Tennessee and that Florida would finish with more SEC losses. Like I said in the previous answer, I would never have predicted Tennessee hitting half a hundred against Georgia, and I sure didn't expect them to lose to Vanderbilt. Man, that would be embarassing. Wait . . . nevermind.
6. Is your pre-season BCS championship game prediction still alive?
I don't remember picking a championship game. I'm pretty sure I knew there would be one, though. I think.