We last did this two years ago. With the publication of the 2009 rules, the NCAA moved to a 2-year cycle, so the next rulebook will not be issued until 2013. Therefore, this year’s edition includes some of the most substantive changes since 2008, when the NCAA went to NFL-style timing rules.

As with past editions, the rule number and page number will be given. There are numerous small, mostly editorial changes to the rules, so we will only cover rules listed as “major changes” by the NCAA from the listing on page 6.

• Rule 1-4-6-b (page 24): Gloves can now be any color.
• Rule 1-4-11-Exc. (page 25): Monitors are now allowed in coaches’ booths, as long as they only show the live telecast or webcast of the game.
• Rule 3-4-4 (page 52): This rule is an overreaction to the events at the end of last year’s Music City Bowl. I don’t particularly care for it, and I think it is excessive. Anyway, this is the “Derek Dooley Rule”:
  

  ARTICLE 4. a. With the game clock running and less than one minute remaining in either half, if a player of either team commits a foul that causes the clock to stop, the officials may subtract 10 seconds from the game clock at the option of the offended team. The fouls that fall in this category include but are not limited to:
  1. Any foul that prevents the snap (e.g., false start, encroachment, defensive offside by contact in the neutral zone, etc.);
  2. Intentional grounding to stop the clock;
  3. Incomplete illegal forward pass;
  4. Backward pass thrown out of bounds to stop the clock;
  5. Any other foul committed with the intent of stopping the clock.

  The offended team may accept the yardage penalty and decline the 10-second subtraction. If the yardage penalty is declined the 10-second subtraction is declined by rule.
  b. The 10-second rule does not apply if the game clock is not running when the foul occurs or if the foul does not cause the game lock to stop (e.g., illegal formation).
  c. After the penalty is administered, if there is a 10-second subtraction, the game clock starts on the referee’s signal. If there is no 10-second subtraction, the game clock starts on the snap. d. If the fouling team has a timeout remaining they may avoid the 10-second subtraction by using a timeout. In this case the game clock starts on the snap after the timeout.

  Remember, it is already illegal to commit fouls to purposely stop the clock (see Rule 3-4-3), usually resulting in the clock starting on the ready for play (i.e., when the ball is set). I think this rule is excessively punitive, as 10 seconds is a lot of time in end-of-half situations, and especially since it is not obvious (to me) that the confusion at the end of the Music City Bowl was designed to stop the clock. I think this may get revisited in 2013. At a minimum, it should be no more than 5 seconds. At best, it would be scrapped entirely.

• Rule 3-5-3 (page 54): Clarification that if the offensive team breaks the huddle with more than 11 players or has more than 11 on the field or in the huddle for more than three seconds, or if the defensive team lingers too long with too many players, that play should be stopped immediately and the penalty called.
• Rule 6-1-10 (page 63): This rule actually took effect last year. It outlaws the “wedge” formation, defining a wedge as “two or more players aligned shoulder to shoulder within 2 yards of each other”, and further clarifies that it is illegal to form a wedge on kickoffs for the “purpose of blocking for the ball carrier”. This is a 15 yard unsportsmanlike penalty. Note that this is not called if there a touchback or if “the kick is from an obvious onside kick formation”.
• Rule 6-3-14 (page 66): This is a new rule that clarifies on place kicks, it is illegal for three defensive players inside the blocking zone to block one offensive player.
• Rule 7-1-3-b-2 (Deleted): Rule 7-1 was extensively rewritten. The former rule 7-1-3-b-2 does not appear in the new text, however, making “locking” legs with the snapper illegal. The written 7-1 also clarifies the offense must be still for 1 second before a snap, or else it is a false start.
• Rule 7-3-2 (page 73): This changes intentional grounding rule in the book to the way it is usually called by eliminating the requirement that the eligible receiver in the area has a “reasonable opportunity to catch the pass”. I would really like to see a definition of “an area” though.
• Rule 9-1-4 (page 84): Clarification that contact to the head or neck of a defenseless player with the “helmet, forearm, elbow, or shoulder” is a foul.
• Rule 9-1-6 (page 84): The entire section on blocking below the waist has been rewritten. To give an idea of the extent of the changes, the rule originally read “Blocking below the waist is permitted except as follows” and then listed conditions in which is it was not legal to block below the waist. It now reads that “There shall be no blocking below the waist” and then lists exceptions to this rule. The exceptions are:
  1. Against the runner.
  2. Players on the offensive team on the line of scrimmage who are within seven yards of the player in the middle of the line (i.e., in the tackle box), in the backfield outside the tackle box, or in motion may block below the waist along the long axis of the field (i.e., only forward or backward) or toward the sideline they are adjacent to the snap (i.e., it is legal to block below the waist toward the nearest sideline, this is usually is only applicable to receivers on the edge of the formation, preventing them from blocking a player below the waist from behind by coming back toward the middle of the field, sometimes known as a “crackback block”).
  3. Offensive players inside the tackle box, either on the line of scrimmage or in the backfield.
  4. Defensive players in the blocking zone except against offensive players waiting to receive a backward pass. (The blocking zone is distinct from the tackle box, in that is is defined as 5 yards in either direction from the middle lineman in an offensive formation and 3 yards forward or back. It also ceases to exist when the ball leaves the zone.)
  Basically, this is a continued effort by the rules committee to clarify blocking below the waist. As far as I can tell comparing the old rule and the new, there are no substantive differences in the actual a
• Rule 9-1-7-c (page 85): It is illegal for a player clearly out-of-bounds to block an opponent who is also out-of-bounds.
• Rule 9-2-1 (page 87): The most famous rule change of the offseason, most likely. Essentially, this change makes unsportsmanlike conduct fouls that occur while the ball in in play enforceable as live-ball fouls. Whereas before all such fouls be administered after the result of the play, this means these fouls can now be enforced from the spot where the occur or from the previous line of scrimmage. The infamous part is where this is brandied about as “taking touchdowns off the board” since now a player highstepping into the end zone before getting there will be penalized 15 yards from the spot and the touchdown will not count. This almost happened at the end of the Utah-USC game last weekend, except that the unsportsmanlike conduct was on the USC bench (since they ran onto the field while the ball was in play after a blocked FG) and is therefore still supposed to be administered from the succeeding spot (in other words, the touchdown still counts).
  The vast majority of unsportsmanlike conduct flags for excessive celebration I’ve ever seen occur after the touchdown has been scored. Therefore, I think the impact of this rule has been vastly overstated and is probably somewhat unlikely to ever be called except in egregious cases. We shall see, though.
• Rule  9-4 (page 93): Batting balls and illegal kicks are now 10 yard penalties instead of 15 yards.
• Page 12-3-5 (page 103): This rule actually took effect last year. This allows officials, in some circumstances, to use instant replay to determine if the clock stopped inappropriately at the end of the half. This is the “Texas Rule”: instant replay was used to put 1 second back on the clock at the end of the 2009 Big 12 Championship Game, allowing Texas the chance to kick the game winning field goal. 

And that’s about it. I highly recommend downloading the rule book (linked back in the first paragraph). It’s a handy reference and who knows, you might learn something.

As usual, you can find the predictions here. I’ll eschew the conference breakdowns and just hit the high points this week.

• First, let’s start with the BCS. Despite the debacle again Stanford, Oregon should still win the Pac-10 (despite the delusions of the pollsters). Meanwhile, Iowa and Penn State combined to really hurt the Big Ten’s chances of being a two bid league. (Last time the Big Ten didn’t send two? 2004-2005.) Now, of course, they still have a shot, especially for lack of other BCS-desirable options. But I came up with an alternate scenario. Alabama beats Florida, Florida gets taken by the Sugar. The Fiesta takes USC, and the Orange takes Cincy to face the ACC winner. With the Fiesta and Sugar remaining, the Sugar does whatever it needs to do get their Florida dream opponent: Miami. Yes, don’t look, but Miami is ranked 14th in the latest standings and, provided they don’t lose again, should be eligible.
• I still don’t think it’s very likely that both TCU and Boise will be BCS teams unless they are ranked 3 and 4 in the final standings (which would make both of them auto-qualifiers).
• I still hate projecting GT to win the rest of their games.
• I’ve finally read in enough places that Duke’s win against NC Central will not count towards bowl eligibility, which I still wasn’t sure about when I did the predictions Sunday night.
• That said, that’s less of a big deal with this week, with the MAC breaking the right way so that it’s possible we’ll have some extra teams. Also, the Big East and Big 12 may have enough provided Missouri can get to 6-6. Crisis averted, for now.
• Oh, as usual Navy is the first confirmed team, as their win over Notre Dame makes them eligible and thus they go to their partner for this year, the Texas Bowl, nominally to face a Big 12 opponent. The odds of this occurring right now are somewhat decent, since I’m currently not projecting Oklahoma State to make it to the BCS.
• Outside of Alabama, Florida, and LSU is the SEC is exceedingly mediocre this year. When I was doing the individual teams this weekend it was a lot harder than it usually is this time of year, as no one in the SEC actually played each other this past weekend. So outside of the best and worst teams, I had no idea where to put anyone, which is how you get Auburn in the Cotton and Tennessee in the Outback, and Ole Miss still in the Chick-fil-a. It’s entirely possible none of those teams will have 9 wins.
• Somewhat Non-Obvious Matchup of the Week: Central vs. South Florida, I guess.

I had originally planned to do the whole season at once, but I, uh, ran out of time. So here’s half of it, with the other half coming next week.

I did this after the 2006 season, which at the time was the best that had occurred since I enrolled and subsequently became a Tech fan in 2003. (The last time Tech ended a season ranked? After the 2000 season.) I didn’t do it after 2007 because, well, I was depressed and who wants to rehash a season that led to your coach getting fired? At any rate, here’s a breakdown of Anno Johannes 1, known to everyone else as “2008”.

Game 1: Georgia Tech 41, Jacksonville State 14
Tech’s shiny new offense got off a great start, though I missed most of it (due to being on an airplane). Tech turned the ball over twice, but it didn’t really matter, as Jax State did the same 4 tiems and Dwyer averaged 10.2 yards a carry.

Game 2: Georgia Tech 19, Boston College 16
I was worried about this one beforehand, and it turns out my fears were well founded. Tech fumbled the ball three times, was out-gained on offense, and was 3 for 12 on third downs. Going into the fourth quarter, the outcome was certainly in doubt with Tech down 16-10. Then these things happened:


Afterwards, BC would get the ball back once and run out of downs, after which Tech held on to win.
While Tech did a good job taking the lead and securing the win, credit goes to the defense which picked off two passes and recovered a BC fumble. Tech missed two FGs at or near the 30, which looked originally like it would cause us to lose the game. I would also note the next week that “GT has been getting yards on big plays more than the methodical drive of the option.”

Game 3: Virginia Tech 20, Georgia Tech 17
The actual impact of this game is the same as the predict impacts for this year’s edition on October 17. Tech (and I say “Tech”, I always mean Georgia Tech) would have benefitted greatly from this game being played in late October or early November, in my opinion. Tech turned the ball over 3 times, twice on fumbles, and so despite beating VPI in most other statisical categories lost the game. (The hivemind of the GT message boards also requires me to mention the the helmet-to-helmet call in the 4th quarter that led to eventual winning field goal. My own mind will mention the fact that there was another non-controversial personal foul on Tech on the same drive, and with 4:37 left on the clock, plenty of time left.) On of the fumbles Tech lost was in the first quarter, when the offense had actually driven into VPI territory.
When we weren’t turning the ball over, Tech’s drives were much more methodical, which wasa good sign heading into the next two games. Nonetheless, another recurring issue was noticed and noted:

Outside of just the fumbles, though, there is plenty of room of improvement for the Jackets. In what I suspect may be an issue all year, the middle of the offensive line has to get better blocks coming off the snap – with as often as VPI was in the backfield, it’s surprising there weren’t more fumbles lost. I say this because GT never established the first option in the triple option – the dive up the middle. B-back Dwyer had 10 carries for only 28 yards as VPI stacked the the middle-of-the-line. The other Tech then sold out on the 2nd option, the pitch-man on the outside. The result? A very banged up Josh Nesbitt, who ran 28 times for 151 yards. 5.4 yards per carry is nice, of course, but you don’t really want your QB getting banged up like that, and he is also prone to fumbling the ball.

Game 4: Georgia Tech 38, Mississippi State 7
This game was a rout, in every sense of the word. Tech rushed for 438 yards and Dwyer had a field day: 141 yards on 9 carries for a 15.7 average. Yowza. The Crimson-and-white bulldogs also obliged by turning the ball over 4 times while Tech had its first turnover-free game of the season. Hopes were back up after this. Those 38 points? Unanswered. The backups even got to play, though they did manage to allow Miss State to score a touchdown, their first once since the 3rd quarter of their game before the infamous 3-2 game.
The downside? Josh Nesbitt strained his hamstring in this game.

Game 5: Georgia Tech 27, Duke 0
Nesbitt was out again, but didn’t matter. This was another rout. 454 total yards, including a shocking 230 yards passing against an undermanned and under-everything Duke defense. Yet, somehow before the game I had managed to worry about this once somehow:

As mentioned above, Duke played Navy and may be somewhat more well-prepared than other opponents that will face Tech this year. Also, starting QB Josh Nesbitt will also miss the game due to a hamstring he strained against Miss State. While backup QB Jaybo Shaw is more than capable of running a proficient option offense (as demonstrated two weeks ago), he lacks the raw athleticism of Nesbitt, especially as a passer.

After the game, I was saying things like this:

As for Mr. Demaryius “BeBe” Thomas, he doesn’t quite have Calvin’s height (6’3″ versus 6’5″) but he still towers over many corners. Calvin also never had a 200 yard game at Tech, or an 88-yard reception. Is BeBe as good as Calvin? Of course not, but he’s darn close which provides a huge asset in this offense. Most teams can’t afford to leave him one-on-one, but because of the run game they will often have little choice.

So it was a pretty good game. Except that, rumor has it, Jaybo Shaw suffered a mild concussion. At any rate, he didn’t start the next game.
Oh, and I made this. I’m still pretty proud of it.

Game 6: Georgia Tech 10, Gardner-Webb 7
My first mistake when I wrote the preview for this game: “Those actually attending the game will be in for a treat…”
Yeah, not so much. Senior Ex-Auburn QB Calvin Booker started the game, bless his heart. In fairness to him, he was never supposed to be an option QB, and transferred in the year before under the impression he’d get a chance in Chan Gailey’s pro-style offense. Tech did all its socring in the 2nd quarter and held on for dear life as it proceeded to turn the ball over 2 twice (three times in total) and allow G-W a touchdown. Tech never got past the G-W 35 in the second half and had to block a very makeable field goal with 26 seconds left in the game. There was no TV coverage for this game, thankfully, so no one saw it, though I still remember being huddled over by my computer speakers hanging on the outcome of that last kick. Not fun.

How many of you have been waiting at your computers since Sunday morning, constantly refreshing your Facebook notes page to see if I had written this column? Well, refresh no more, for it is here! (No one, of course, falls into that category. Is the laziness joke getting old yet?)

Thanks to the injured status of Matt Flynn and Glenn Dorsey, Tennessee managed to put up a fight against LSU. The announcers even recognized this fact, stating, “…this is a fight for the SEC Championship.” I typically like CBS’ commentators, but that remark is one of the worst I have heard on television. During one return from a commercial break, the camera showed UT’s mascot barking intermittently. Verne Lundquist waited a few seconds, then calmly greeted the dog by saying, “Hello, Smokey.” However, these quips were nothing compared to the constant assault of brain-numbing Dr. Pepper commercials.

I should have known that West Virginia was going to lose, given the predictable unpredictability of this season. The Mountaineers’ collapse against 4-7 Pittsburgh is understandable, given the nature of rivalry games and Pat White’s mid-game injury. The officials tried to prevent the upset with phantom holding calls in the fourth quarter, but they did not succeed. The ending, the Panthers punter walking out of the end zone for a safety as time expired, was either the most hilarious or the most pitiful I’ve ever seen. At least Slaton and White have one more year to make a run at the title.

Missouri’s Chase Daniel was less than spectacular against Oklahoma’s defense. The star quarterback completed 23 of 39 passes for 219 yards but failed to find the end zone even once. The Sooners stuffed the Tigers in the red zone on multiple occasions, forcing field goals. In other news, Florida International topped North Texas for their first win of the season, and Stanford broke a five-game losing streak to Cal. The ACC Championship was sparsely attended, mostly due to its irrelevance.

The losses by West Virginia and Missouri paved the way for a coaches’ call-in show on SportsCenter. Mark Richt, Les Miles, and even Pete Carroll all tried to sell their team to the voters. (Jim Tressel, whom I suppose was confident about his chances, was noticeably silent.) The decision on Sunday evening? 11-1 Ohio State will face 11-2 LSU in the national championship game. The Buckeyes are likely to receive another spanking from the SEC, but I’ll save the rushed and extremely brief prediction detailed pre-game analysis for a later post.

Those darn islanders won again! And would you believe it, somebody actually gave them a first-place vote in the AP poll! Does someone really think that Hawaii could stand against one of the traditional powerhouses? I guess we’ll see when they face Georgia on New Year’s Day. Here’s hoping Matt Stafford reminds them that you need offense and defense to win a football game.

Here’s my Heisman ballot.

3. Thomas Weber, kicker, Arizona St.: Weber was 42/43 on extra points and 22/23 on field goals (that’s 95.7%). He made two over fifty yards, one from 53. In four games, his Sun Devils would not have won without his leg.

2. VINCE YOUNG, quarterback, Texas: Come to think of it, I’m officially renaming the Heisman the YOUNG Award. I would have given my first-place vote to VINCE YOUNG for the third year in a row, but his successor has finally arrived. That successor is named…

1. Tim Tebow, quarterback, Florida: I don’t think it’s possible to describe Tim Tebow without sounding idolatrous. The man (it is reprehensible to refer to Tebow as a “guy”) was only contained by four defenses this season: Ole Miss, Auburn, LSU, and Georgia. His lowest output during those games? 221 total yards of offense against the Bulldogs. 221 yards was his minimum! Against South Carolina, he appeared to run for first downs whenever he felt like doing so. I foresee Tebow winning at least three YOUNGs during his career, if not four (one will be bonus).

In the midst of all the recent coaching changes, I have an announcement to make. Due to my wedding in June and the beginning of my teaching career in the fall, I do not think that I will have time to write this column next season. Therefore, it is with great sadness that I announce my resignation from asimsports, effective January 9. I will finish out this season with bowl commentary during the holidays, but the chances of me returning in August are slim. (The CFP may be shut down indefinitely as well.)

Note: I will no longer include pictures in these posts, because formatting them with captions in Blogger is tedious.

The college football season is way too short. Fans are offered only fourteen out of fifty-two weeks to enjoy the greatest sport in the world (unless you count the bowl season). I say that’s not enough. If it were up to me, college football would be played in the spring, too. Each team would play a total of twenty-four games. The doubled air time would be well worth the exponential spike in player injuries that would occur. As an added bonus, baseball would get much less attention from the sports media.

Anyway, you probably didn’t direct your browser to this note in order to read me whine. LSU dropped another triple-overtime thriller to Arkansas. The upset may have led to Nutt’s contact extension (which he turned down for a lucrative position at Ole Miss [!?]). It also destroyed the Tigers’ championship hopes, in all likelihood. LSU can still secure a trip to the Sugar Bowl with a win over Tennessee (4, CBS), but the title game is now a very long shot.

In contrast, some other Tigers are one win away from a trip to New Orleans. Thanks to their 36-28 victory over rising star Kansas, Missouri is scheduled to face Oklahoma this Saturday for the Big 12 title (8, ABC). Chase Daniel vaulted his team over West Virginia to the No. 1 spot in the BCS. The Mountaineers attempted to prevent the coup with a 66-21 slaughter of Connecticut. Unfortunately for Rodriguez, the BCS realized that crushing a team in New England means about as much as lapping a baby in a mile race.

Ohio State benefited the most from this week’s shakeup. A loss by Missouri or West Virginia gives the Buckeyes a chance to redeem their embarrassment at the hands of the Florida Gators. It is unlikely that 4-7 Pittsburgh will topple the Mountaineers (7:45, ESPN), so Jim Tressel should start praying now for the Sooners to overwhelm the Tiger defense. Georgia and Virginia Tech, who each took care of their in-state rivals, need both of the top two to lose to have a shot. (The Hokies would also have to overcome Boston College (1, ABC).)

In other news, Nebraska demonstrated defensive ineptitude once more and allowed Colorado to drop 65 points on them. Bill Callahan, the Alec Baldwin doppleganger of Division I-A, was fired soon after the game. Boston College defeated Miami for the first time since the Flutie miracle, and Tennessee rode another SEC East overtime matchup to a win.

Their backup 11 of 39 passing, Oregon was unable to score against UCLA. Surprisingly, the Bruin quarterbacks were even worse, completing 4 of 17. Like much of the Pac-10, both teams are active this Saturday. Oregon hopes to save face in the Civil War against Oregon State (4:30, ESPN2), and UCLA looks to taint another Trojan season (4:30, ABC).

And now, some coverage of the little guys. Florida Atlantic and Troy are going to duke it out for the Sun Belt (the “Best of the Worst” title), Miami (OH) and Central Michigan for the MAC, and Tulsa and Central Florida for Conference USA (what a presumptious name). Florida International, the only winless team at this point, hosts North Texas in hopes of avoiding an ultimate disgrace.

Hotshot Hawaii defeated Boise State to claim the WAC Championship (doesn’t the name of their conference say it all?) and a #12 BCS ranking. The Warriors host Washington, who at 4-8 don’t look very threatening. Apparently the Huskies knew in advance they wouldn’t make a bowl and scheduled a trip to the island (like Alabama did a few years ago).

Speaking of Alabama, did anyone watch their game a few nights ago? I think they lost to their in-state rival for the sixth year in a row. That’s what I read, anyway. Oh wait, I did see that game in person. Witnessing another Iron Bowl victory by Auburn from the 25-yard line was well worth the five hours I spent at the stadium before the game. I’d like to thank my fiancee Laura for waiting with me; it was truly an act of love.

Finally, this hilarious quote by ESPN.com writer Ivan Maisel: “…as for the theory that Nick Saban is whipping Alabama into shape, Tuberville just continues to whip Alabama.” War Eagle!