Fresno State: Can Derek Carr Fill the Big Shoes of His Brother?

For young Derek Carr, trying to do what your brother did in the same uniform almost a decade ago is something that a lot of young quarterbacks would have a hard time living up to. Especially the kind of legacy David Carr left behind.

WAC: Four Teams Jumping Off an Already Sinking Ship

Karl Benson, you had your chance to save your small insignificant conference. Instead, you came out looking like a fool and it cost you your top four teams. The only reason anyone knew who the Western Athletic Conference actually was.

National Signing Day: Wrapping up the Western Athletic Conference

The Western Athletic Conference will have their final National Signing Day the way the conference used to look.

Boise State has already departed for the Mountain West and this will be the final season for Fresno State, Nevada, and Hawaii who will also move to the MWC after the conclusion of the 2011 college football season.

That being said, we can still talk about how the day went for the conference as a whole and who had the best day. While there may not have been big surprises, the team atop the conference rankings might surprise you.

How about Louisana Tech. That's right, according to the Scout.com rankings the Bulldogs came in first after the day was said and done. They may have been the only bright spot in a conference that finished second to last in the rankings just in front of the Sun Belt.

Ouch.

Here's a breakdown on how Scout.com saw the conference shaking out on National Signing Day and we'll look at a few of the top players from each team in the conference.

Louisiana Tech: 25 total commits (13 HS, 12 JC) Offense: 13 Defense: 12

Beau Fitte - Outside Linebacker (Port Sulphur, LA) ***
Also offered by: LSU

Malcolm Pichon - Defensive Tackle (Slidell, LA) ***
Also offered by: Louisiana-Monroe, SMU and Memphis

Quitton Patton - Wide Receiver (Coffeyville, KS) ***
Also offered by: Troy, South Florida


Fresno State: 18 total commits (18 HS 0 JC) Offense: 6 Defense: 12

Charles Washington - Safety (Encino, CA) ***
Also offered by: Iowa State, New Mexico State, Wyoming

Donavon Lewis - Outside Linebacker (Fresno, CA) ***
Also offered by: Nevada, San Jose State, Washington State

Ejiro Ederaine - Outside Linebacker (Corona, CA) ***
Also offered by: San Jose State


Hawaii: 18 total commits (14 HS 4 JC) Offense: 6 Defense: 12

Ellis Henderson - Cornerback (Vancouver, WA) ***
Also offered by: Hawaii, Air Force, Idaho, New Mexico State, Washington State

Tigi Hill - Safety (Kahuku, HI) ***
Also offered by: Utah State

Brian Clay - Cornerback (Vacaville, CA) ***
Also offered by: Army, Colorado State, UC San Diego, San Jose State, Utah State


Utah State: 22 total commits (8 HS 14 JC) Offense: 9 Defense: 12

Chuck Keeton - Quarterback (Houston, TX) ***
Also offered by: Air Force, Bryant, Memphis, Rice

Peni Vea - Safety (Kailua Kona, HI) ***
Also offered by: Idaho

Bojay Filimoeatu - Defensive End (Walnut, CA) ***
Also offered by: Florida International, Iowa State, Nevada


Nevada: 17 total commits (13 HS 4 JC) Offense: 7 Defense: 10

Burton DeKoning - Outside Linebacker (Folsom, CA) ***
Also offered by: Cal Poly, Fresno State, Utah State

Reggie Coates - Defensive End (Encino, CA) ***
Also offered by: Colorado State, Iowa State, San Diego State, Washington

Jeffrey Lark - Safety (North Brigton, ME) ***
Also offered by: Arkansas, LSU, Purdue


Idaho: 23 total commits (16 HS 7 JC) Offense: 11 Defense: 12

Marquan Major - Wide Receiver (Las Vegas, NV) ***
Also offered by: UNLV

Solomon Dixon - Cornerback (Honolulu, HI) **
Also offered by: none

Cameron McKernan - Wide Receiver (Kent, WA) **
Also offered by: Air Force, Eastern Washington, New Mexico State, Portland State, Wyoming


San Jose State: 21 total commits (16 HS 5 JC) Offense: 10 Defense: 11

Joseph Gray - Quarterback (Los Angeles, CA) ***
Also offered by: Washington

Mercy Maston - Cornerback (Bakersfield, CA) ***
Also offered by: Arizona State, Boise State, Colorado State, Fresno State, UCLA, Washington State

Tyler Ervin - Running Back (Colton, CA) **
Also offered by: Idaho


New Mexico State: 23 total commits (14 HS 9 JC) Offense: 13 Defense: 10

Kemonte Bateman - Wide Receiver (Pasadena, CA) ***
Also offered by: none

Valerian Ume-Ezeoke - Center (Garland, TX) **
Also offered by: none

Austin Franklin - Safety (Dallas, TX) **
Also offered by: Utah State


Only three WAC teams would finish in the top 100 in recruiting when this day came to a close. Louisiana Tech finished 85th, Fresno State was tied for 88th and Hawaii finished in the 90th spot. The rest of the conference finished anywhere from 105th to 119th.

Imagine this if you will. The conference that finished second to last among Division-I football conferences. After the departure of Boise State, Fresno State, Nevada, and Hawaii, they may be in the very bottom of the totum poll this time next year.

Fresno State Football Has Become Mediocrity at its Finest

Photo courtesy of the Associated Press

From the moment I heard Pat Hill tell the media that 8-4 could be the best this program could ever hope for, I knew there was a problem. Apparently I'm the only one who thinks so because the university is yet to make a change when one is long overdue.
Saturday's bowl game, the Humanitarian Bowl, came around against Northern Illinois and I thought this was Fresno State's best chance to get out of the 0-2 bowl game hole they'd been in. I thought this would be a great opportunity to flex their muscles a little bit and show that they were a stronger team than they've shown all season.

I was wrong.

Four embarrassing quarters later, the Bulldogs walked out of Boise with their heads down after getting blown out by the Huskies, 40-17.

That night, I received a text message from a good friend of mine who had picked Fresno State to win and told me "I'll never pick them to win ever again." He picked them last year against Wyoming and ended up on the wrong side of that one, too.

As long as I've been a fan and as long as I've grown up with Bulldog blood running through my veins, it's become increasingly hard to believe this team can achieve anything at all let alone a win in a decent bowl game.

No offense to Boise, but the Humanitarian Bowl isn't exactly looked upon highly by the rest of the college football world. I'm sure you guys do a good job hosting it, but there's nothing to gain with a win. It's just another bowl game in a long list of bowl games no one cares about.

Though most will tell you Fresno State had little to gain with a win, they had a whole lot more to lose with a loss. They saw just how much they lost after getting pounded by a team that shouldn't even have been in the same league with the Bulldogs.

So what happens now?

Well, there's a fan base to speak to and explain why this program hasn't won a bowl game in three years. But here's an even better question. Why, after 12 season as the head coach at Fresno State, has Pat Hill won just one conference championship (1999 - shared with TCU and Hawaii) and four bowl games in 11 appearances?

There are a lot of questions this fan base wants. Above all, they want to know why Hill is still their head coach. It's a fair question and the university knows it. The problem is, they say they don't have the money to buy out the contract extension they gave him this time last year.

I was back home in Fresno for the Thanksgiving holiday and I remember a family friend of mine commenting on a local writer for the Fresno Bee. The guy he was referring to was Matt James and this family friend felt James was far too critical of the football program.

As you might imagine, I disagreed with him.

While James can be a tad critical, I asked this family friend if there's really anything to be optimistic about? Is there anything in their past, or their future for that matter, that would make you feel the least bit optimistic about what they can accomplish. I received no answer.

After the sound beating they took at the hands of a team that finished in second place in the MAC Fresno State quarterback Ryan Colburn, playing in his final game as a Bulldog, told the media after the game "they wanted it more than us for whatever reason."

It's that kind of attitude that makes it seem like the Bulldogs could care less about the beating they took. It's that kind of attitude that has made mediocrity the norm around the central valley.

On Sunday, Pat Hill held an exit media session to talk about the year that was. One of the comments he made proves my point about just doing well enough to get by.

In an article from Bryant-Jon Anteola of the Fresno Bee, Hill told the media, "I know eight-win seasons might seem like the norm here, but wins are wins and wins are tough to get. Sure, we all want more. But what this team did, playing a lot of young guys, not really having consistency on offense, beating Cincinnati and Illinois in the same year to get to an eight-win regular season, that's a good year."

Wins are tough to get? What conference does Fresno State play in again?

Hill can continue to give the rest of their opponents all the credit he wants to give them. He can continue to say, with each loss, that they ran into the best team in school history but that excuse is going to run out when the 2011 season comes around.

Next season, there will be no Boise State to stand in their way. There won't be the big bad boys in blue to keep you from getting to the top of the conference for the first time in Hill's 12 seasons as the head coach.

No, I'm not going to count the shared title so don't even ask me.

The one person, the only person, I feel sorry for at this point is redshirt freshman quarterback Derek Carr. Yes, that Derek Carr, the younger brother to current NFL quarterback, David Carr.

Next year, he's going to have the pressure of an entire fan base squarely on his shoulders. While it might be unfair to put much pressure on a first year starter, he's already expected to be the savior of a program that is on a tail spin with no correction in sight.

I'm done with mediocrity and I'm done listening to the man at the head of this team make excuses for every loss they take. He expects this fan base to be ok with an 8-4 or 8-5 finish to every season and he expects that we'll just live with mediocrity.

Though I'm not ok with it, the university apparently is. While the rest of college football programs would fire their head coach after three straight bowl losses and only four wins in 11 bowl appearances, this program gives their head coach a contract extension. Apparently they were hoping for something the rest of us knew wasn't coming.

So, we'll look to 2011 and hope for better things. When or if they don't come, we'll just be handed the same old lines about how hard wins are to come by.

The fans expect better but apparently Coach Hill does not.

Fresno State Football: Ryan Colburn's Career Full Of Missed Opportunities

 

Otto Kitsinger III/Getty Images

Fresno State quarterback Ryan Colburn has just two games left in his career as a Bulldog before he either goes on to to the NFL or wherever his path takes him.

On Friday night, he'll play his final game in front of the home fans at Bulldog Stadium. The final time he'll get to see the Red Wave, and the last time he'll get to walk down the ramp into the stadium.

It's been an up and down career for Colburn since he became the quarterback at Fresno State. He's been beloved by some and questioned by others. He's had his great moments and he's had moments that make you shake your head and wonder what he's thinking.

To read the full article, click here

Boise State: The Haters Are Coming Out in Masse

Let's hear it. I know it's coming and I know you Boise State haters can't wait to say your peace. You've been waiting for this day, so come on out with it.

The Broncos were the darling of the BCS, they were wanting a shot at the national championship, they thought they deserved it. That all ended on a cold Friday night in Reno, Nevada.

They had a chance to win the game in regulation but the game winning field goal sailed wide and Nevada had new life. That's all they would need to gain the momentum they needed to knock off the Broncos in overtime, 34-31.

So, on another college football Saturday morning, everyone and their mother wants a piece of Boise State. They want to use them as a punching bag and the trash talk has been coming fast and furious. It's not just coming from fans, it's coming from national writers, bloggers, as well as network analysts. They couldn't wait for this moment and they're playing the "I told you so" card more times than Lou Holtz calls Notre Dame a "great football team."

Far be it for me to sit here and tell you Boise doesn't deserve what's being said, but does it really need to get like this? Do you really need to call them "overrated?"

Let's give Boise State a little bit of credit. You wanted to blast their win over Virginia Tech and call it soft after the Hokies lost to James Madison. But, after a nine game winning streak, you now want to back track and say the Broncos couldn't beat the Hokies if they played that game again. Really?

Last year, the Broncos knocked off Oregon in the first game of the season. Then Oregon showed how strong of a team they were and the same naysayers came out and wanted to tell Boise they couldn't beat Oregon if they played later in the season. Not only that, but you wanted to hold that against them in the rankings. Really?

But, those two games were wins for Boise State. This game against Nevada didn't go that way. They lost this game. This wasn't a game that Boise gave away, this wasn't a game that Boise just didn't show up for. Boise State got beat by a good Nevada team.

Colin Kaepernick and Vai Taua went out as seniors with the biggest win of their careers. They got the win they had been searching for since they came on campus. Give those two guys a lot of credit because they wore the Boise State defense down late in the game and took advantage where they could.

So, if the haters want to come out and say all they want against Boise State, I will leave you with this. Schedule them. Beat them.

You can talk about their weak conference all you want. You can talk about their weak non-conference schedule all you want. However, if Alabama is willing to pay more than a million dollars to San Jose State for a game, why can't they pay the same to a team that is in the same conference?

Well, to be perfectly honest, it's not that they can't. They won't.

Boise State is still a good football team that was not the better team on this Friday night. They weren't the better team on the field in this one game. They were the second best team, and they got beat. Simple as that.