http://www.yardbarker.com/content/team/407 Recent articles about the Northern Illinois Huskies en-us There is more talent than you think in the MAC. The league has traditionally been known as giant killers being capable of winning games against more highly regarded opponents, but it needs a few wins this year to uphold that legacy. Mon, 04 Aug 2008 14:33:15 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/300708 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/300708 After taking an in depth look at each conference to find the Best Running Backs in College Football I decided to continue on find out who is primed to be the best Wide Receivers in 2008. While this is a little more difficult overall than looking into the backfield, I've come up with some great players that will be suiting up this fall. Here is my breakdown of the best receivers accompanied by their 2007 stats…. Fri, 01 Aug 2008 19:28:21 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/299620 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/299620 Central Michigan quarterback Dan LeFevour is one of the top five fantasy quarterback options, and several other fantasy options can be found from the MAC in 2008. Mon, 14 Jul 2008 10:53:07 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/290179 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/290179 As is usually the case this time of year, college football begins it's annual process of hiring and firing coaches. A lot of action has taken place recently, so let's spend some time sorting things out Tue, 27 Nov 2007 16:15:30 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/38907 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/38907 Fantasy Insider Online's Dan Mesday writes up an outlook of the Mid-American Conference. If your college fantasy football league covers the MAC player pool, you'll want to read this article... includes: key returnees, key losses, must-see games, and 2007 outlook. Thu, 19 Jul 2007 19:41:45 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/20293 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/20293 The folks at the Poinsettia Bowl were kind enough to give us press passes for tonight's game. It's the first time we've attended a game while representing Sportable so we're a bit unsure how to go about it. But we'll be giving you guys a couple of updates from Qualcomm Stadium, assuming the press box has internet connections that aren't as outdated as the stadium. If the camera comes on us, we'll be the guys drawing dirty looks from established local journalists. Wed, 20 Dec 2006 02:03:21 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/7133 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/7133 Now this is a serious blog post. The good people at Motown Sports Revival break down every bowl game and include dates, times and television coverage for each contest. You know you're a committed college football fan when you're spending time doing writeups on the MPC Computers Bowl. Tue, 19 Dec 2006 21:04:23 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/7120 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/7120 Wondering who should win the Heisman? Troy Smith? Adrian Peterson? Nope. The answer is Garrett Wolfe from rarely mentioned Northern Illinois. Some Stats: 1,343 Yards rushing (avg. 224 yds/game) 15 TD 285 total yards against #1 Ohio State (171 rush, 114 pass) Sat, 14 Oct 2006 02:53:27 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/3422 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/3422 Raise your hand if you think you know who should win the Heisman. I could poll fifty of the readers and I guarantee that I could get at least five different answers, and possibly more. The week that just passed did very little to help sort out the race. So many of the leading contenders put big numbers on the board, some helped by their opponents, but almost all did it based on the talent they possess. Therefore, it strikes me as funny that last week, when posting my Heisman Watch, I actually got a little flack about my choices. The funny thing was that most of the flack was directed at my placement of Brady Quinn. I had him fourth last week, and I think that was fair, considering that many of the leading publications out there didn't have him any higher than 5th. Based on his performance for most of the Michigan State game, could you blame anyone? That was two weeks in a row that Quinn played less than perfectly while others excelled. So I didn't understand the commentary around Quinn, especially since I took most of this space talking about how his statistics don't stack up when you compare them head to head with all of the other leading quarterbacks. More bizarre? Being criticized for leaving Dwayne Jarrett off the list. I have repeatedly talked about how receivers need to do so much more than catch passes to get a look for the Heisman. So, why should I put Jarrett on the list. Even if he had played this past week, he wouldn't have been among the leaders in receiving yards or touchdowns in the nation. Where would he fit on this list then? And he was hurt during the game against Arizona before last week's ratings came out. So, why should I carry a hurt player on this list. I didn't keep Tate around when he missed a game. Knowing that Jarrett would be out for at least two weeks and maybe as many as four, I think his absence was quite justified. So, now, having said all that, welcome to the expanded edition of the Heisman Watch. Expanded edition? Yes, because while with all good intentions, I was going to cut a few players off this week, there was just no way to do it. Therefore, the tough decisions will come after this week. This week, you get 11 players in the Top 10, and more players added to the Outside Chance list, though anyone appearing there, their chances are very dicey. After watching all the top performers for the week, here is how I would rank the contenders coming out of Week 5: 1. Troy Smith (QB Ohio State): 16/25, 186 yds, 4 TD vs. Iowa - I think that the Buckeyes might want to start making plans to travel to Arizona this year. After another dominating performance, it looks like the only team that might be able to stop them is Ohio State,... or maybe Michigan in the last week of the season. However, right now, they are riding high and the biggest reason is the leadership and passing of Troy Smith. Smith had another big game to move back into the lead in the Heisman race after taking last week off against Penn State. His road is even easier this week against Bowling Green. You think the defensive backs of the Falcons aren't scared right now? 2. Adrian Peterson (RB Oklahoma): BYE, Season Stats: 643 yds, 5.5 ypc, 7 TD - There is a saying that you can't lose your starting job to injury. Tell that to Wally Pipp, and now tell Adrian Peterson that a bye week can't cost you the lead in the Heisman race. With all the great performances this week, you could have made the case that Peterson could have fallen further. He has a chance to make a great impression this week and confuse some of the voters when he takes on Texas. The Longhorns better be ready. 3. Garrett Wolfe (RB Northern Illinois): 31 car., 353 yds, 3 TD vs. Ball State - Allow me to make introductions for those who don't know him by now. Nation, Mr. Wolfe, Mr. Wolfe, Nation. Wolfe is making it hard to forget him. His performances are still coming against teams like Ball State or Indiana State, but you can't deny that he is a much more advanced player than the defenses that he faces, and that he showed against Ohio State that he can do the same thing to bigger and faster teams. Wolfe is a monster, and unless something happens to him or he has an off game against a MAC foe, he should be sitting in New York. Either that, or the voters just aren't paying attention. 4. Brady Quinn (QB ND): 29/38, 316 yds, 2 TD vs. Purdue - Welcome back Brady Quinn. Good to see you still have some talent in that arm of yours. Quinn averaged a little of 8 yards per attempt this week, picking on the one stat I used against him last week. Since I am not, and was never sold on Purdue, Quinn doesn't move up into the top three. He showed the talent that was hyped coming into the season in this game. Now he just has to keep it up. If he has another let down game against any of Notre Dame's next foes (Stanford, UCLA, Navy, UNC, Air Force...), we might have to rethink this Top 5 mark and be looking at Quinn watching the ceremony from his home. 5. Chris Leak (QB Florida): 14/20, 174 yds, 2 TD vs. Alabama - If Leak could find a way to get going in the first half of a game, we might be looking at a two arm race for the Heisman. He again led his team back from behind, this time against Alabama. Leak faces LSU this week. The top ranked team defense will show where Leak belongs on this list and whether his time in the Top 5 is limited. 6. Marshawn Lynch (RB Cal): 17 car., 106 yds, 3 rec., 59 yds, 3 TD vs. Oregon State - So, if you throw out his first week this season, Lynch is definitely a Top 5 player in the league. However, I still can't get that performance out of my head. Lynch was doing everything once again on Saturday against Oregon State. His scoring numbers are right with the league leaders after not doing anything to begin the season. He will continue to be the focal point of the Cal offense, given how shaky the passing game can be for them (and who would have thought we would say that about a Jeff Tedford team). 7. JaMarcus Russell (QB LSU): 18/20, 330 yds, 3 TD vs. Mississippi State - So, I guess Mississippi State wore out their defense in the first few weeks of the year because JaMarcus Russell had no trouble at all making them look silly on Saturday. He missed on only two passes all day and was able to take a seat early thanks to the very lopsided score. Russell will be taking on Florida this weekend and the pecking order of SEC quarterbacks will be complete after that game. My money is on Russell moving up a bit in this list. 8. Steve Slaton (RB West Va.): BYE, Season Stats: 583 yds, 6.8 ypc, 6 TD - As I mentioned before, this was a bad week to have off, especially after Slaton had an off game last time the voters saw him. I move him down again this week, but he is not off the radar yet. He just has a lot of work to do. Remember, this kid is only a sophomore, and while that shouldn't matter in terms of the votes at the end of the year, it does play into the final tallies. Don't be surprised if that is one of the reasons that is given for why Slaton doesn't take home the award this season. 9. Michael Hart (RB Michigan): 31 car., 195 yds vs. Minnesota - I am beginning to doubt my statement last week taht Hart is the only Wolverine that might deserve this award this year. Sure, 195 yards is nothing to sneeze at, but now he is starting to have to share the spotlight a little too often. Henne seems to have a Jekyll and Hyde bit to him. Week 4 wasn't good to him, but Week 5 was and therefore, look who is back in the outside chance group, even if it is a far outside chance group at this point. And Mario Manningham is doing exactly what I said he had to do last week. He is up to 9th in receiving yards and his 7 touchdown receptions is also tied for tops in the nation. Hart is the token representative this week from Michigan, but don't be surprised if that changes. 10. (TIE) John David Booty (QB USC): 23/32, 269 yds, 3 TD, 1 INT vs. Washington State, Eirk Ainge (QB Tennessee): 23/27, 324 yds, 4 TD vs. Memphis - A tie? A tie! Yes, a tie. Booty and Ainge were both too good in their games for me to say that either of them didn't belong on this list. Now, if I were being picky, maybe I would take Booty and drop him while keeping Ainge, just based on the performance of both teams in their games this week. The loss of Dwayne Jarrett didn't seem to hurt Booty too much this week, as he found Steve Smith often to pump up his stats. Ainge was stellar in his game, with his only "pick" being taken away because of an offsides penalty on the Tigers. This should shake out this week with Washington playing USC, and Tennessee taking on Georgia. Outside chances: Mario Manningham (Michigan), Chad Henne (Michigan), Calvin Johnson (Georgia Tech) Heisman-like Performance This week's player: John Beck - QB, BYU Line: 23/37, 321 yards, 3 TD vs. TCU Lost in the shuffle of many of the big performances of the weekend might have been the end of at least some people's predictions for this year's BCS buster. The TCU Horned Frogs played a high profile game on Thursday night, hoping to get some good television time in front of the voters and they run into a buzz saw named BYU. There were very few who thought that BYU had a chance in this game, but it should be no surprise that the Cougars were able to give TCU fits. John Beck is a major reason for that. I have talked about Beck before, especially when both Miami and Florida State were struggling with young quarterbacks. I was watching him put up some big numbers as a sophomore. So, now as a senior, he again is putting up contender-like numbers. There have been some great college quarterbacks at BYU, and Beck is just another in a long line of those. Congrats to BYU on pulling the big upset this week, and congrats to Beck on his Heisman-like performance. Tue, 03 Oct 2006 18:01:33 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/2965 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/2965 As I looked at the statistics from the games and thought about what I had seen from Saturday afternoon and evening, a thought struck me. The Heisman Hype has awesome power. You may be thinking that this was a given. However, let me throw you an example. Not to take anything away from Brady Quinn's performance on Saturday night, but if you just go by pure statistics, Quinn should have no business being in the Heisman race. You may be thinking that is crazy, but I can prove it to you. Pick a number in your head where Quinn is in quarterback rating in Division 1-A. You have it? Ok. If you have anything above 40, you are wrong. How is that for shocking? Quinn is no better than the 43rd best passer in the league by quarterback rating at this point in the season. "Well he throws for a lot of yards," you are thinking. "That must count for something." Sure it does. He is sixth overall, but that comes because he throws the ball more than all but 3 quarterbacks in the league. That leaves him 59th in yards per passing attempt, not a stat that stands out. And on top of that, we have always in years past dismissed quarterbacks like a Tommy Chang at Hawaii, or anyone at Texas Tech for that matter, because we said their numbers were a product of the system. What is to say that Quinn is not a product of the new Notre Dame Charlie Weis system and that the only real number that means anything in terms of his stats is the yards per attempt? Quinn is only one touchdown pass behind the leaders, and has only thrown four interceptions, but overall, his numbers don't stack up near the top. And that is where the hype around him and his on-field leadership abilities are going to have to carry the Golden Boy to the award if he still hopes to win. His comeback on Saturday night will go a long way towards making that happen, but he does not move all the way to the top after this week. He is firmly in the top tier after his performance though. After watching all the top performers for the week, here is how I would rank the contenders coming out of Week 4: 1. Adrian Peterson (RB Oklahoma): 27 car., 128 yds, 3 TD vs. Middle Tennessee State - Oklahoma needed a win in a bad way after the debacle that was the Oregon game. Peterson helped the Sooners to do just that. The yardage may not look very impressive, but Peterson is sure picking up the scoring numbers and providing a huge spark on offense that is even helping Paul Thompson become a real quarterback. He takes over the top spot this week after another average week by a large number of the candidates. Now, it is a matter of staying power, and that will take a big day against Texas in two weeks. 2. Troy Smith (QB Ohio State): 12/22, 115 yds, 1 TD, 2 INT vs. Penn State - Ok, Brady Quinn fans, here is your chance to complain. Quinn lit up the Penn State defense, and Smith looked just average against them. However, if I didn't move Quinn out of the top five after his dismal performance against Michigan, I feel like I can give Smith the benefit of the doubt this week. He loses the lead for now, just by proving he is human, but has a chance to come back still. 3. Garrett Wolfe (RB Northern Illinois): 22 car., 198 yds, 4 TD vs. Indiana State - Before you go complaining about why he is third, let's talk about Mr. Wolfe. He is currently the leading rusher in Division 1-A, and is leading by almost 200 yards. Now, I know you are going to say that he is doing it against inferior competition. Think back though to the first game against Ohio State, the #1 team almost unanimously across the country. Wolfe only managed almost 300 yards of offense on his own in that game. That is definitely not against inferior competition. Now Wolfe just has to hope that his 2-2 Huskies squad comes around so he will have a chance to touch the ball a lot more and stay in this race. 4. Brady Quinn (QB ND): 20/36, 319 yds, 5 TD, 1 INT vs. Michigan State - As stated above, it is amazing what a little hype and some leadership skills can do for you. Quinn's interception looked like it was going to seal the loss for Notre Dame. Quinn never gave up though and he climbed back into the game and also into the Heisman race. 5. Chris Leak (QB Florida): 15/26, 267 yds, 2 TD, 1 INT vs. Kentucky - Leak is the ultimate in slow starters. The Florida offense just takes about two quarters to get going, but when they do, look out. Referencing the numbers discussion that I had on Quinn, Leak is the 4th highest rated passer in Division 1-A. And yet, I am still placing him 5th for now. I think he needs to show a little bit more against the tough defenses of some of the SEC teams coming up on his schedule to move any further up the line. 6. Steve Slaton (RB West Va.): 24 car., 80 yds, vs. East Carolina - Steve Slaton finally found a team that was his equal on Saturday. He finally didn't run for over 200 yards or some insane like amount on only 6 or 8 carries. The Pirates tested Slaton and came out the better, even if they lost the game. Slaton will need to bounce back quickly. The Big East schedule is not so difficult where he will have a chance to prove himself against a great defense time and time again. He may have lost any momentum he had and his chance to go to NYC. 7. Michael Hart (RB Michigan): 23 car., 91 yds, 1 TD vs. Wisconsin - At least Hart broke the end zone with his sub-100 yard rushing performance. He is clearly the only player on the Wolverines that will get consideration at this point. Sure Mario Manningham has caught 5 touchdowns in the last two weeks, but receivers have a steep hill to climb and unless he goes off for three more next week, Hart's name will be the only one appearing on ballots. 8. Marshawn Lynch (RB Cal): 17 car., 124 yds, 2 rec., 33 yds, 1 TD vs. Arizona State - Cal used the passing game that was almost non-existent against Tennessee to help them beat Arizona State this weekend. Lynch was a big part of that, catching one of the four touchdowns from Nate Longshore to help in the win. He also averaged over seven yards a carry on the ground which is sure to be demoralizing to the defense. Lynch didn't start the season strong and is still trying to catch up, but a multi-dimensional performance like this sure helps. 9. JaMarcus Russell (QB LSU): 17/23, 198 yds, 2 TDs vs. Tulane - It doesn't take much to beat Tulane, but JaMarcus Russell did more than enough as the LSU Tigers bounced back from their tough loss to Auburn last week. Russell has been very consistent all season, but hasn't yet impressed enough to move up to the top five. Right now, he isn't even the best quarterback in his conference. Russell has to hope to make up the loss somewhere along the way so that LSU might have a chance to take the SEC West and get himself to the SEC championship and earn another game in the voters' minds. 10. John David Booty (QB USC): 24/39, 179 yds, 1 TD, 1 INT vs. Arizona - Booty is going to be hurting after this week. He loses his top receiver Dwayne Jarrett for the next two to four weeks and will have to find someone else to pick up the slack. Jarrett was definitely supporting Booty's numbers and candidacy. He now will have to be more creative to hope to not fall out of this list. Outside chances: Erik Ainge (Tennessee) Dropped from my watch list: Teddy Ginn, Jr. (Slash Ohio State): 2 rec., 15 yards vs. Penn State - Ginn had some return yards too, but I already warned last week that he was in danger. When you only total 15 yards on offense, you are going to have trouble staying in the Heisman watch. Ginn is still one of the top scorers in the league, but you need to do more than catch five yard passes to win the award. Chad Henne (QB Michigan): 18/25, 211 yds, 2 TDs, 3 INTs - Henne is back off the list. I might have been too quick to pull him back on originally. After his slow start, he had a brilliant game against Notre Dame. However, this week, he was back to his shaky ways. Sure 18/25 looks nice, but three of the misses were into the other team's arms. The Big Ten schedule doesn't get any easier for him, so he better watch out that this doesn't become a pattern if he wants the undefeated showdown with Ohio State at the end of the season. Heisman-like Performance This week's player: Ian Johnson - RB, Boise State Line: 29 car., 178 yards, 2 TD vs. Hawaii Boise State seems to always have issues when they play Hawaii. Still, they managed another win on the blue turf at home and Ian Johnson was a big part of it, rushing for 178 yards and two touchdowns. Johnson wasn't the only part of the Boise State offense that was working as his quarterback Jared Zabransky also put up big numbers. Johnson is the same back that had five touchdowns against Oregon State earlier this season, something that almost earned him the Heisman-like Performance then. Instead, he gets it a few weeks later for a game that is definitely more meaningful for his team this season. Johnson is only a sophomore, so we may be hearing big things about him over the next few years as he competes with Steve Slaton and Jonathan Stewart to be the top running back in the country. Wed, 27 Sep 2006 04:05:07 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/2740 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/2740 Let's be honest. If you haven't made an impression by Week 3 of the season, you aren't winning this award. Using that criteria, I have narrowed my official list down to 13 names (including one which I had previously dropped from the list). Three players lost their shot permanently this week. Well, maybe I should say semi-permanently considering that I brought back Chad Henne to the list this week. I know, I know. He looked fairly average in his first two games this year, but his overall numbers are what is keeping him in the running right now. That, and his amazing performance against Notre Dame when he looked like a different player out there on the field. That was the Henne that everyone was expecting to see for the last two years plus two games, and he finally arrived in a big time way. That said, Mr. Henne didn't make the top 10, since it was only one game. His is in Heisman Watch list purgatory, hanging out with Erik Ainge and JaMarcus Russell, two quarterbacks of losing teams who until this week sure looked like they could make a statement in the Heisman race. And I am sure everyone is anxious to know where the Mighty Quinn is sitting this week. Brady, he of the three interceptions, feel to #5 behind the strong performances of three running backs and another solid week by Troy Smith. After watching all the top performers for the week, here is how I would rank the contenders coming out of Week 3: 1. Troy Smith (QB Ohio State): 21/30, 205 yds, 2 TD vs. Cincinnati - It took a while for Troy Smith to find his game against the Bearcats, but it turned into another solid performance. You can forgive him for that too. It is a little difficult to get hyped up for a game against Cincinnati after the great performance that Smith and the Buckeyes turned in against Texas last Saturday night. He was able to take most of the 4th quarter off against the Bearcats which held back his numbers, but Smith was still the best leader of the week. 2. Steve Slaton (RB West Va.): 21 att., 195 yds, 2 TD vs. Maryland - I think it is safe to say that the nation took notice of Slaton on Thursday night. He had 149 yards in the first quarter and after that, it was just a question of if he would top 200. Slaton put his performance square in the minds of the voters. Now he has to make sure he doesn't disappear the rest of the season. Remember this guy is still a sophomore too, which could hurt him for winning this year, even if he is the best player in football. 3. Adrian Peterson (RB Oklahoma): 34 car., 211 yds, 1 TD vs. Oregon - Peterson's team may have lost the controversial game in Oregon, but Peterson wasn't the reason. He was a huge spark on offense for the second straight week and continues to rack up huge numbers despite being the focus of the defenses he faces. 4. Garrett Wolfe (RB Northern Illinois): 24 car., 263 yds, 2 TD vs. Buffalo - Yes, it is Buffalo, but still an amazing performance. Wolfe is going to have a lot of games like this against the MAC, and Buffalo is the worst of the bunch. Given the week that many of the contenders had, you can't keep him out of the upper tier. 5. Brady Quinn (QB ND): 24/48, 243 yds, 3 TD, 3 INT, 1 bad fumble vs. Michigan - The golden boy of the Golden Domers took a big hit in his quest for the Heisman and the National Championship on Saturday. Maybe the best news for Quinn in his quest for the award was that many of the other leading candidates also had soft weeks. Quinn pulls in at the end of the top tier, but just barely. 6. Michael Hart (RB Michigan): 31 car., 124 yds, 1 TD vs. Notre Dame - In a game that was dominated by Henne and the passing game, Michael Hart had a very solid performance, helping to run the clock down and keep Notre Dame from getting their defense off the field. Hart wasn't dominant enough to move up into the upper five, but if he keeps hanging in there, he might be by the end of the season. 7. Chris Leak (QB Florida): 15/26, 199 yds, 3 TD, 1 INT vs. Tennessee - For a while, it looked like Leak might drop all the way out of the top ten but he sure turned on the leadership in the second half of this game. For such a big game on the road, in a very tough environment, Leak sure showed a lot of poise. You would think the quarterback of a team that won would be higher in the rankings, but I think six is a pretty good spot right now. He is set up perfectly for a big run once he and the Gators get deep into the SEC season. 8. Teddy Ginn, Jr. (Slash Ohio State): 5 rec, 34 yds, 2 TD vs. Cincinnati - I am starting to get bored with Mr. Ginn. Yes, he is exciting when he touches the ball. Yes, he is the fast. But when you barely catch any yards, and only score touchdowns on short passes, where is the flair? He is close to falling off the list, and I am thinking that most voters would say the same with impressive performances elsewhere. 9. John David Booty (QB USC): 25/36, 257 yds, 3 TD vs. Nebraska - I have to admit that I didn't think this guy would come to much. USC was sure replacing a lot, but maybe that is helping him as the defense has no idea where to look. Of course, it helps when you have a receiver like Dwayne Jarrett. Its only been two games, but he sure looks like he belongs on this list, and even if he doesn't make it to the top this year, he still has one more year to show his stuff. 10. Marshawn Lynch (RB Cal): 6 car., 112 yds, 1 TD vs. Portland State - After a slow start to his season against Tennessee, Lynch has started to turn it on just in time for the PAC-10 to start. He didn't play long against Portland State, but he made the most of his time on the field, including a 71 yard scamper. He didn't have quite the explosive performance that Slaton did when West Virginia routed their opponent, but Lynch is back in the game. Outside chances: Erik Ainge (Tennessee), Chad Henne (Michigan), JaMarcus Russell (LSU) Dropped from my watch list: Kenny Irons (RB Auburn) - Two weeks in a row without gaining 100 yards. Yes, it was against two very good defenses, but Heisman winners overcome that. Sorry, Mr. Irons, this is not your year. Calvin Johnson (WR Georgia Tech) - He started with a great game against Notre Dame and has just fallen off the face of the Earth since. He was very much outshined by Reggie Ball on Saturday. No award for him. Zac Taylor(QB Nebraska) - I always feel bad when I knock someone off this list. Taylor just didn't have it against USC, and while he didn't throw any interceptions in the loss, he just isn't going to be able to compete with the rest of the list without a couple of huge games when the Big XII season starts. Heisman-like Performance This week's player: Lester Ricard - QB, Tulane Line: 16/23 passing, 304 yards, 4 TD vs. Mississippi State While last week, there were several possible choices for this honor, this week, there were very few. Ricard is the big winner this week, beating a Mississippi State defense that had looked very good over the first couple of weeks. Four touchdowns is nothing to scoff at, and Tulane was the underdog coming into the game. Sylvester Croom must be scratching his head, wondering what happened. Tulane had lost eight games in a row coming into the game, and marked their first win on the road against an SEC team since 1989. The Green Wave did have to hold off a late run by the Bulldogs, but came home with the win. Considering all that happened to Tulane in the past year, you have to give a big hand to Ricard and Tulane on their big achievement. Wed, 20 Sep 2006 14:39:48 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/2529 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/2529 Twelve teams will vie for this year's Mid-American Conference championship. Akron and Northern Illinois are the favorites. But here's one reason each why neither of those teams will win. And ten more 'splaining why the other ten will also lose. Thu, 24 Aug 2006 04:32:08 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/1508 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/1508