Can the Irish fight on with key injuries?

The Notre Dame Fighting Irish have started this 2009 season with a bang. Although a minor setback put them at 2-1 with a nail-biting loss to Michigan in the Big House. This success has come at the hands of QB Jimmy Clausen, who has thrown for 951 yards and 9 TDs in just 3 games, and RB Armando Allen, who has stacked up 326 yards and 3 TDs on the ground. But these two have had a rough week. Clausen came down with a turf toe injury in the second quarter of last weeks game, and Allen has been trying to deal with a lingering ankle injury. According to Eric Hansen, Clausen is definitely playing on Saturday while Allen is a game-time decision. If these two aren't 100%, can the Irish pull off a win against the Purdue Boilermakers?

Head coach, Charlie Weis, says that if Allen can't go on Saturday a couple of underclassmen will share his spot; sophomore Jonas Gray and junior Robert Hughes are the subs. I don't see these two carrying the load that Allen did, but not many could. It's a decent sized load. Allen is the nation's 15th-leading rusher on only 59 carries. Weis will start Clausen, but said that back-up Dayne Crist was so impressive while Jimmy was resting, that Crist could get a few snaps even if the No. 2 QB in the nation has no problems with his toe. I can foresee the Irish having some troubles with their rushing attack, but Clausen is, as Dick Vitale would say a "P.T.P.er," or "Prime-Time Player." Jimmy will have no problems against the Boilermakers, and will lead the Fighting Irish to their 3rd win in 4 games.

Can Lane Kiffin back up his big mouth?

It's Revenge Week in college football, and Tennessee's head coach Lane Kiffin has promised sports fans just that. The Vols travel to The Swamp this week to play an SEC rival, the undefeated, number one ranked Florida Gators. As if the Gators aren't good enough already, The Swamp is arguably the most intimidating venue in college football. Visiting teams don't often come out of there with a win, or even a close game. And when Kiffin was hired for the head coaching job at Tennessee in December, he told the media that he looked forward to "singing 'Rocky Top' all night long after we beat Florida next year; it's going to be a blast." But can Kiffin back it up? The Vols have been trampled by the Gators the last 2 years, including a 59-20 melee in Gainesville in 2007. On top of that, Tennessee hasn't exactly torn it up so far this season. They lost at home to an unranked UCLA team, 19-15. If they didn't score more than 15 points and were held to 93 passing yards by the UCLA defense, then what are they going to do against the Gators? Florida statistically has the best defense in the SEC and scored 62 and 56 points in their first 2 games. Urban Meyer doesn't seem too interested in what Kiffin has to say, he is confident in his team and should be. He told the media that the game is about the players and players only and that he's never seen the coaches strap-up and play so it doesn't really matter what he says. Indeed it doesn't, because his Gators will destroy the Vols in a game that probably won't even be worth watching. Tennessee should be happy if they come within 15 points of these gridiron greats. Volunteer fans beware, Tebow is here.

Will the Ducks be able to bounce back from Blount's blunder?

The Oregon Ducks opened their season this week with a 19-8 loss to the Boise State Broncos. But an even bigger loss came after the game when Oregon's senior runningback, LeGarrette Blount, got into a dispute with Boise's Byron Hout. After a few words and a shove from Hout, Blount threw a right hook that connected with Hout's jaw, knocking him to his knees. The decision came the next morning to suspend Blount for the remainder of this years season, which ends his NCAA eligibility. The question is, how will the Ducks move on without him?

The whole scenario puts the Ducks in an unwanted negative light as explained in this article from ESPNU. The game itself was embarrassing enough, but now the remaining players have to deal with the unrelenting media asking all the wrong questions. At this point, the Ducks would like to put all of Week 1's "beatings" aside and move on, focusing on another worthy opponent, Purdue. Moving on without Blount could prove to be a test, though. The Ducks will have to find someone that will replace the 1,002 yards and school-record 17 touchdowns that Blount stacked-up on the ground last season. The Ducks have 2 redshirt freshmen at the top of the depth chart now, LeMicheal James and Kenjon Barner. I don't see either of them putting up the numbers or even being half the threat that Blount was out of the backfield. The Ducks offense is quite versatile, though; they don't rely too heavily on the run. Even though it helps tremendously to be able to jump on a studs shoulders when the going gets tough and know that he will produce. I'm excited to see what head coach Chip Kelly has up his sleeve this weekend as his Ducks host the Purdue Boilermakers.

Who's this years Heisman winner?

Greatest Heisman Race Ever by Tim Griffin

With the new season starting there are already questions concerning this years Heisman Trophy candidates. Last years top 3 candidates are all returning to play another season. Sam Bradford, with the Oklahoma Sooners; Tim Tebow, with the Florida Gators; and Colt McCoy, with the Texas Longhorns. Will Bradford repeat? Will Tebow get his second in 3 years? Will McCoy pick up his first trophy? Or will there be a dark horse winner?

No one has won it back-to-back since Archie Griffin in 74 and 75, so the odds are against Bradford, but I'm not saying that he's out of it by any means. McCoy has the accuracy(78% last year) and the weapons(including number one wide-out, Jordan Shipley), but Tebow is my pick. Returning from a National Championship win last season, hes the most experienced. He's the most well-rounded college quarterback I've ever seen, he runs like a fullback, throws like a top-notch slinger, and plays with the intensity of a hard-hitting linebacker.

On top of that, the rest of the Gators are no bums. They are already on top of the rankings entering this season. They're defense is one of the best in the nation, lead by linebacker Brandon Spikes who is also already in the running for the NCAA Defensive Player of the Year. I see a whole lot of 3-and-outs up their sleeves, giving the Gators' offense that many more chances to make things happen. I'm expecting great things out of Tebow and his Gators this season, including another National Championship appearance.