Week 4 college football action is in the books, so we decided to fire up the Tuesday Tweetbag to tackle the burning topics on your mind this season about everything from top prospects to the best teams in the sport.
Feel free to submit your questions to @BryanDFischer on Twitter each Monday or early Tuesday morning to get them answered every week. Without further ado, let the smorgasbord of questions commence.
Absolutely, but one does have to caution that it's only September. Still, I'm not sure any player is having as good a start to the season as Cooper is in leading the country in receiving yards and receptions. Considering he's on pace to match last season's totals by mid-year, things are going well in Tuscaloosa for Alabama's top wideout.
He will have two factors working against him, however. The first being that Charles Woodson was the last non-quarterback/running back to win the award, and that was nearly 20 years ago. The second is that wide receiver is more dependent on others for production than any position, so Cooper will need the Crimson Tide offensive line and Blake Sims to keep up their good play, as well. The good news is that with some good games against teams like Texas A&M and Auburn, he can easily emerge as the Heisman leader out of the SEC (sorry Todd Gurley) and possibly turn this into an East vs. West race against Marcus Mariota by the end of the year. Throw in new offensive coordinator Lane Kiffin doing whatever he can to get his primary pass catcher targets and Cooper sits in good shape to at least make it to New York City this year.
It would have made a difference for those who went to bed early and just checked the box score, but it was ESPN's highest-rated game on Saturday, so plenty of people watched. What they saw is Oregon, outside of Marcus Mariota, struggling on both sides of the ball. The offensive line was horrendous (I understand injuries, but still) and the defense uncharacteristically struggled to do much of note, especially in the back seven. It just wasn't a great performance when compared to Oklahoma's on the road. And that game had West Virginia score late in order to make it closer than it appeared, too.
Having covered the Pac-12 as extensively as I have, though, I will say that trips to Pullman for night games always lead to the score being closer than it should -- if there's not an upset. That's especially true with Mike Leach's style of play and the increased talent level in the Cougars' program. Still, not an impressive showing by the Ducks, aside from Mariota.
Because most of us have been around teams to know that it's highly unusual for a suspended player to suit up in full pads if they're not playing. The fact that Winston is known for histrionics only added to the situation. The bottom line is he should have been on his best behavior, doing what he could to remain out of the spotlight/off-camera on Saturday. He didn't, and the look on Jimbo Fisher's face said it all. If the supportive head coach was upset at Winston doing what he did, I see no reason why others can't.
I've caught quite a bit of Washington's first four games, and I've come away unimpressed. You can see the team has talent -- Danny Shelton leads the country in sacks, John Ross is a burner as a deep threat, etc. -- but the Huskies just haven't played well as a whole. The offense has received a boost with Cyler Miles under center, but it still isn't clicking. The defense has made some big plays, but there have been some bad lapses, especially in the secondary.
I think it could be a combination of two factors. The first is not getting up to play against sub-par opponents. The second is the offensive/defensive systems Petersen has installed take time to learn and players are still playing catch up. That is to say, they're not playing fast because they are thinking instead of reading and reacting. I still think Petersen will turn Washington into a force given all the resources available, but it's going to take some time. Either way, they better buckle up and play better with Stanford coming to town on Saturday.
It's never a good sign when it's Week 5 and folks are already discussing possible replacements for Brady Hoke, but such is the state of affairs in Ann Arbor. While the fan base has definitely turned on the coaching staff, athletic director Dave Brandon has to be feeling the heat for the team's lackluster performance, too. He can't be happy with the regression he's seen from early in Hoke's tenure to now.
I think Michigan would be lucky to get either Jim or John Harbaugh, but I don't view either as realistic candidates. I know there have been reports that Jim has clashed with his front office, and he doesn't have a new contract yet. But I would be surprised if he went to Michigan after the season if Brandon is still athletic director. And I know the Ravens are not letting John walk away.
If the Wolverines do make a move, I would suggest giving Mike Gundy a call to feel him out. He's had his differences with the Oklahoma State administration recently and, despite it being his alma mater, he did consider Tennessee when it was open. Dan Mullen (Mississippi State), Todd Graham (Arizona State), Bronco Mendenhall (BYU), Jim McElwain (Colorado State), Craig Bohl (Wyoming) and Justin Fuente (Memphis) might be on the list, as well, even though those names might not be sexy enough for the maize and blue faithful. Honestly, I would think Michigan State defensive coordinator Pat Narduzzi, with a top-notch offensive coordinator (say, East Carolina's Lincoln Riley), would be attractive, but my guess is Michigan aims high before settling.
Between Florida and Michigan, I think it's easily the Wolverines. I'm not sold on Florida athletic director Jeremy Foley letting Muschamp go, and there's still the little fact that the SEC East is wide open and a first- or second-place finish isn't out of the question for the Gators. I think Muschamp is much safer than most think, even if that's to the dismay of Florida fans this year.
I can't foresee Iowa letting Kirk Ferentz go as long as Gary Barta is in charge. It's not just how big his buyout is, but the fact that he's ingrained into that program almost as much as Hayden Fry was. The better question is, who would you replace Ferentz with that would take the job? I'm not sure Hawkeyes fans would like the answer to that question unless somebody like a Stoops brother is interested.
You can follow Bryan Fischer on Twitter at @BryanDFischer.
