Mile High Report

The Mayonnaise Jar and Two Beers.

firstfan — Sat, 10 May 2008 23:26:41 -0000

When things in your life seem almost too much to handle, when 24 hours in a day are not enough, remember the mayonnaise jar and the 2 Beers.

Hoosierteacher stood before the crowded lecture hall at MHR University. Styg, Guru, Zappa, mdierk( the A students) were all in the front row, eager to learn. Firstfan was in the back with his dunce cap on. All of the students were there. Super7 and Jon Tollerud were hoping for an in-depth discussion of the now famous 3-3-5 defense. But instead Hoosierteacher had some unusual items in front of him.

When the class began, he wordlessly picked up a very large, empty mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill it with golf balls. He then asked the students if the jar was full. They agreed that it was. Hoosierteacher then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into the jar He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles rolled into the open areas between the golf balls. He then asked the students again if the jar was full . They agreed it was.

Hoosierteacher next picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar. Of course, the sand filled up everything else. He asked once more if the jar was full. The students responded with a unanimous “yes”. Hoosierteacher then produced two Beers from under the table and poured the entire contents into the jar effectively filling the empty space between the sand. All the students laughed except for Trinidad Jack who cried.

“Now,” said Hoosierteacher as the laughter subsided, “I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life. The golf balls are the important things---the Broncos, your family, your children, your health, and your friends---and if everything else was lost and only they remained, your life would still be full.The pebbles are the other things that matter like your job, your house and your car.The sand is everything else---the small stuff, things like the guy who cut you off in traffic or oakland or Phyllis and his Merry men.

Guru jumped up and shouted “I get it! If you put the sand into the jar first," he continued, "there is no room for the pebbles or the golf balls. The same goes for life. If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff you will never have room for the things that are important like the Broncos and MHR.” All of the other students were awed by Guru’s wisdom.

“Exactly right!” said Hoosierteacher “'Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness. Spend time with your children. Teach them to love the Broncos. Spend time with your parents. Visit with grandparents. Learn of your Bronco roots. Take time to get medical checkups. Take your spouse out to dinner and explain the advantages of the 3-4 over the 4-3 given our current personnel. Spend more time on the computer with MHR. There will always be time to clean the house and fix the disposal. Take care of the golf balls first---the things that really matter. Set your priorities. The rest is just sand.”

Then from the middle of the room Broncofanstuckinsd raised her hand and inquired what the Beer represented. Hoosierteacher smiled and said, “I'm glad you asked. The Beer just shows you that no matter how full your life may seem, there's always room for a couple of Beers with a friend to talk about the Broncos.”

This adaptation of an old Bronco folk tale, passed down from father to son, was submitted by the guy in the back row with the dunce cap and was based on an email from Danver.

MHR Scouting - The SEC

ejruiz — Sat, 10 May 2008 22:27:52 -0000

SEC stands for Speed Earns Championships. Actually, it stands for Southeastern Conference, but the former is just about as true. If you think I'm kidding, just ask the Ohio State Buckeyes, back-to-back national runners-up to the University of Florida Gators (2006) and Lousiana State University Tigers (2007). Though the SEC is college football's flagship conference now, it also has a storied history.

The SEC began play in 1933, founded by 13 universities that broke off from the old Southern Conference in order to shine on their own. Three original members have since left (Sewanee in 1940, Georgia Tech in 1964 and Tulane in 1966) and two others (Arkansas and South Carolina) joined for play starting in 1992. After that expansion, the conference divided its twelve teams into two divisions (Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, South Carolina, Tennessee and Vanderbilt in the East and Alabama, Arkansas, Auburn, Lousiana State, Mississippi and Mississippi State in the West) with the winners of each matching-up for a championship game in Atlanta's Georgia Dome prior to the bowl season every year. This rich tradition, fueled by passionate support, leads to top-notch competition.

In the South, college football is the unofficial religion. Saturday is the true Sabbath, stadiums are their temples and sinners are separated from saints by the scoreboard and the standings. Average capacity at an SEC home stadium is 78,115 and they sell out with ease. They have TV ties to CBS on a national level and various other local channels throughout the region. There are 25 official rivalries involving SEC teams, some of which are inactive or not very competitive at the moment, but most of which are red-hot. I'll delve into them more in detail at a later date, either before the games are played or in a single, separate post prior to the start of the season. Sufficed to say for now: the SEC is home to some of the most intense rivalries in all of sports. Teams and players that make it out of this conference are among the best in the land and they often prove just that in the postseason and beyond.

SEC schools have laid claim to 24 national championships in football, including six since 1992 and three since 2003. The conference was dominated by Florida, Tennessee and Georgia in the 90's and by LSU, Florida, Georgia and Auburn so far this decade. Though the dredges have at times been among the weakest squads in the nation, the conference is typically very deep and nothing short of elite at the top. Great teams are usually lead by great players and the SEC has had no shortage of either. In 2007, for instance, four star athletes (QB Tim Tebow of Florida, RB Darren McFadden of Arkansas, OC Jonathan Luigs of Arkansas and DT Glenn Dorsey of LSU) combined to win 9 of college football's 25 prestigious individual awards; meanwhile, Dorsey and his Tigers won the conference's second consecutive national title. The SEC has also fared well at the next level, in both the NFL draft and on the playing field.

Since expanding to its current size in 1992, the SEC has had, on average, over six (6.19) players selected in the first round of 16 NFL Drafts. They've had four players chosen in the top 11 picks in three of the last four years. On the NFL's Opening Day in 2007, the SEC had more players (263) on active rosters than any other conference. The Denver Broncos currently have 19 players from the SEC on their roster, including at least 11 that will garner significant playing time in 2008 and beyond. Jason Witten (TE, Cowboys/Tennessee), Alan Faneca (OG, Steelers/LSU), Albert Haynesworth (DT, Titans/Tennessee), Patrick Willis (ILB, 49ers/Ole Miss), Fred Taylor (RB, Jaguars/Florida), Jason Peters (OT, Arkansas), DeMeco Ryans (ILB, Texans/Alabama) and our own Champ Bailey (CB, Broncos/Georgia) were former SEC standouts that were named to the NFL's 2007 All-Pro teams. Keep in mind that that list doesn't even include other stars like Chris Samuels (OT, Redskins/Alabama), Tony Ugoh (OT, Colts/Arkansas), Marcus McNeill (OT, Chargers/Auburn), Lito Shepard (CB, Eagles/Florida), Will Witherspoon (LB, Rams/Georgia), Marlon McCree (S, Broncos/Kentucky), Jospeh Addai (RB, Colts/LSU), Eli Manning (QB, Giants/Ole Miss), Eric Moulds (WR, Titans/Mississippi State), John Abraham (DE, South Carolina), Peyton Manning (QB, Colts/Tennessee) and our own Jay Cutler (QB, Broncos/Vanderbilt), as well as dozens of others who played their college ball in the SEC.

I have been a fan of the Florida Gators, and by extension SEC football, since the 1994 season or so. It will be my pleasure to share my knowledge of this college football conference with you all in 2008 and perhaps even beyond. Moreover, I am currently a sophomore at the University of Florida, so I may even be able to scout some of the Gators games in person as well. I will analyze the SEC's games, stats and highlights, in order to uncover potential future Broncos in the making. Hopefully you will find this interesting and entertaining, because it will certainly be that for me. Welcome to the SEC, my friends: this is college football. Cheers!

Al Davis Likes Shiny Things

studbucket — Sat, 10 May 2008 22:12:45 -0000

The Pro-Football-Reference Blog has a short post on Al Davis and his infatuation with 1st round picks.

My favorite part of the article shows that of the two teams on which he had 22 former 1st-rounders, both were 4-12. It's amazing to see how a team can stockpile so many 'talented' players, yet be so poor. We can only hope the Darren McFadden pick continues the trend.

Enjoy the read!

Case Against Thomas Dropped

phantom818 — Sat, 10 May 2008 14:14:50 -0000

First a false positive from Henry and some sorrow and regret from that angle and now a dropped case on the cocaine charges from Thomas? I'm liking what I see here. Marcus is going to be something else going into the year...and he's young.

The Florida state attorney's office has dropped its case against starting Denver Broncos defensive tackle Marcus Thomas.

Thomas was arrested in March in Clay County, Fla., for cocaine possession. However, formal charges were never filed. According to the Clay County clerk's Web site, the case was abandoned Friday.

Thomas' attorney, Charlie Truncale, said Friday night that he had spoken with assistant state attorney James Boyle earlier in the day and was told the case had been dropped.

"It's over," Truncale said. "I'm so pleased for Marcus."

MHR Scouting - ACC Primer

hai17 — Sat, 10 May 2008 05:42:58 -0000

This is intended to be a basic primer for the ACC, which will give a little bit of background info that will allow you to better understand the later posts which will include more specific discussion of the conference.

ACC is short for Atlantic Coast Conference, also known as the birthplace and home of college basketball ;) (I’m sorry, but basketball affects everything that happens in the ACC). It is a conference consisting of 12 schools strung along the Eastern Seaboard of the United States, centered in the Mid-Atlantic region and the Carolinas. What most people don’t realize is that the ACC is actually a fairly decent college football conference in addition to their basketball prowess. While it has been several years since there has been a national contender out of the ACC, there is typically fierce competition in-conference, and the ACC has posted about a .500 record in bowl games for the past few seasons. The main problem that has recently faced teams in the ACC has been a deficiency in quarterback play. Since 2004, when both Matt Schaub and Phillip Rivers were drafted, the ACC has really only had one good quarterback (Matt Ryan from Boston College who was picked 3rd this year) and the teams have struggled to find even adequate players at the QB position (for examples, look at Miami and Florida State’s struggles for the past few seasons).

More importantly for us, however, the ACC has had the most NFL-ready talent of any conference over the last few years. The ACC has the record for the most players picked in the draft (51 total in 2006). Also, for the past three years, the ACC has had two players picked in the top four picks in the draft. In 2006, Mario Williams from North Carolina State University was the first pick, and D’Brickashaw Ferguson from the University of Virginia was the fourth. In 2007, Calvin Johnson from Georgia Tech was the second pick, and Gaines Adams from Clemson University was the fourth. Then this year, Chris Long from University of Virginia was the second pick and Matt Ryan from Boston College was the third.

A brief bit of history might allow us to understand the ACC better. The ACC started out in 1953 when seven teams in the Southern Conference decided to break off and form their own conference. These original teams were Clemson, Duke, Maryland, North Carolina, North Carolina State, South Carolina, and Wake Forest. Virginia joined shortly after the original seven members formally created the conference. This original conference was what essentially gave birth to college basketball (if you want to know more about that just ask – ACC Basketball is the biggest sport by far here in NC, so I could "talk your ear off" about college basketball). South Carolina left in 1971 and after a couple decades as an independent joined the SEC. The ACC added Georgia Tech in 1978, and subsequently added Florida State in 1991. Up until the addition of Florida State, the ACC was essentially a basketball first conference, with football taking a major back seat (actually a contributing factor to South Carolina leaving). Florida State was the first true "football school" to participate in the ACC (South Carolina is a football school, but they had never won a bowl game until 1995, so they were not a very successful one). A major conference realignment occurred in 2003 (and it was almost entirely focused on improving ACC football) which resulted in the addition of Miami, Virginia Tech, and Boston College. This has resulted in the conference as seen today, which consists of the following division of teams.

Atlantic	Coastal
Boston College	Duke University
Clemson	Georgia Tech
Florida State	Miami
Maryland	North Carolina (UNC)
North Carolina State (NCSU)	Virginia (UVA)
Wake Forest	Virginia Tech (VT)

While the rivalries in ACC football are not as fierce as those found in other conferences, the ACC definitely has its share of ill will (much of it the result of spillover from basketball season). The ACC has explicitly defined two "rivals" for each team, one in each division, and several schools also have historical rivalries that were not explicitly defined by the conference. In part two I will go over the major rivalries, and cover anything that doesn’t fit into the following sections. In parts three and four I will break down each division, and give a general overview of each school, along with both their historical football performance, and a forecast for what they are likely to do in the coming year. Feel free to ask any questions you might have about the ACC, or suggest anything you’d like me to cover about the teams.

Editor's Note: Feel free to adjust this however you need to so that it better fits in with the MHR scouting stuff. I had it prepared, and Jon had posted some PAC-10 stuff, so I figured I'd go ahead and post it and get some feedback before I write the rest of the stuff.

MHR Scouting - PAC 10 History

Jon Tollerud — Fri, 09 May 2008 17:48:02 -0000

To start off, we are going to introduce the different conferences to those who have never watched or participated in College football. We will start with the history of each conference and then move to the rivalries of each team in the conference and finally the final "primer" piece of each will be the styles of play for each team in the conference. It is a lot to digest so we will break it up into different pieces for each without further ado...

PAC 10 History

Entering the 2007-08 season, the Pacific-10 Conference continues to uphold its tradition as the "Conference of Champions." Pac-10 members have claimed an incredible 146 NCAA team titles over the past 17 seasons, for an average of more than eight championships per academic year.

Even more impressive is the breadth of the Pac-10's success, as those 146 team titles have come in 24 different men's and women's sports. The Pac-10 has led the nation in NCAA Championships 41 of the last 47 years and finished second five times.

Spanning nearly a century of outstanding athletics achievement, the Pac-10 has captured 359 NCAA titles (254 men's, 105 women's), far outdistancing the runner-up Big Ten Conference's 212 titles.

The Conference's reputation is further proven in the annual United States Sports Academy Directors' Cup competition, the prestigious award that honors the best overall collegiate athletics programs in the country. STANFORD continued its remarkable run in the 2006-07 season, winning its 13th consecutive Directors' Cup. In the 2006-07 competition, seven of the Top-30 Division I programs were Pac-10 members: No. 1 STANFORD, No. 2 UCLA, No. 5 USC, No. 9 CALIFORNIA, No. 10 ARIZONA STATE, No. 24 ARIZONA and No. 29 WASHINGTON. The Pac-10 landed five programs in the Top-10, two more than the second-place SEC (2).

Participation in the postseason was a common occurrence for the Conference in 2006-07. Of the 22 sports sponsored by the Pac-10, 19 witnessed at least half its teams participating in NCAA or other postseason action. The men sent 62 of a possible 90 teams into the postseason (68.1 percent), while the women sent 74 of a possible 100 teams (74.0 percent).

The Pac-10 experienced continued success in football as the league sent six teams to bowl games. USC and CALIFORNIA were named co-Pac-10 Champions with identical 7-2 league records. The Trojans capped their season with a 32-18 win over Michigan in the Rose Bowl. Overall, the Pac-10 went 3-3 in postseason bowl games with ARIZONA STATE, CALIFORNIA, OREGON, OREGON STATE and UCLA also earning bowl appearances. USC, CALIFORNIA and OREGON STATE found themselves ranked in the Top-25 in the nation at the conclusion of the season, finishing fourth, 14th and 21st respectively (Associated Press).

On the men's side, Pac-10 members have won 254 NCAA team championships, far ahead of the the 195 claimed by the runner-up Big Ten. Men's NCAA crowns have come at a phenomenal rate for the Pac-10 - 15 basketball titles by five schools (more than any other conference), 49 tennis titles, 45 outdoor track and field crowns, and 26 baseball titles. Pac-10 members have won 25 of the last 38 NCAA titles in volleyball, 33 of the last 48 in water polo, and 20 total swimming and diving national championships. Individually, the Conference has produced an impressive number of NCAA men's individual champions as well, claiming 1,146 NCAA individual crowns.

The roots of the Pacific-10 Conference date back over 90 years to December 2, 1915, when the Pacific Coast Conference (PCC) was founded at a meeting at the Oregon Hotel in Portland, Ore. Original membership consisted of four schools - the University of California at Berkeley, the University of Washington, the University of Oregon, and Oregon State College (now Oregon State University). All still are charter members of the Conference.

Pacific Coast Conference play began in 1916. One year later, Washington State College (now Washington State University), was accepted into the Conference, and Stanford University joined in 1918.

In 1922, the PCC expanded to eight teams with the admission of the University of Southern California and the University of Idaho. Montana joined the Conference in 1924, and in 1928, the PCC grew to 10 members with the addition of UCLA.

The Pacific Coast Conference competed as a 10-team league until 1950, with the exception of 1943-45, when World War II curtailed intercollegiate athletic competition to a minimum. In 1950, Montana resigned from the Conference and joined the Mountain States Conference. The PCC continued as a nine-team Conference through 1958.

In 1959, the PCC was dissolved and a new Conference was formed - the Athletic Association of Western Universities. Original AAWU membership consisted of California, Stanford, Southern California, UCLA, and Washington. Washington State became a member in 1962, while Oregon and Oregon State joined in 1964. In 1968, the name Pacific-8 Conference was adopted.

Ten years later, on July 1, 1978, the University of Arizona and Arizona State University were admitted and the Pacific-10 Conference became a reality. In 1986-87, the league took on a new look, expanding to include 10 women's sports.

Currently, the Pac-10 sponsors 11 men's sports and 11 women's sports. Additionally, the Conference is a member of the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation (MPSF) in four other men's sports and two other women's sports.

Edwin N. Atherton was named the Conference's first Commissioner in 1940. He has been succeeded by Victor O. Schmidt (1944), Thomas J. Hamilton (1959), Wiles Hallock (1971), and current Commissioner Thomas C. Hansen in 1983.

Other Notes:

Some rumors have circulated among sports columnists and fans that the Pac-10 may one day look to add two more teams to its conference. The addition of two teams would create two divisions within the conference, similar to that of the ACC in football only and the Big 12, MAC, C-USA, and SEC in all sports.

It has been speculated that the addition of two teams would lead to a season-end football game to determine the conference champion. Taking in the account the need for the "traveling partner" arrangement among the Pac-10 schools, among some of the schools rumored to be sought after by the Pac-10 Conference would be Utah and BYU, or Nevada and UNLV, or even San Jose State (SJSU) and Fresno State.

A more persistent rumor involves San Diego State (SDSU), one of the largest of the three California State University system schools which still engage in Division I football (the other two programs are at SJSU and Fresno State) and the only one of the California State campuses which is categorized as a "Research University" by Carnegie Foundation, but a partner for SDSU never seems to materialize. See recent newspaper article and recent newspaper opinion column for more discussion of the SDSU rumors.

Furthermore, UC Davis has recently raised its athletics programs to Division I status, including Division I-AA for football. In its first ever football game against a Division I-A opponent, UC Davis defeated Stanford at famed Stanford Stadium. Since both UC Davis and SDSU are already associate members for certain Pac-10 sports, both are research universities, and both have a full complement of athletic programs, rumors are circulating that it may be possible, in the future, for them to be the two "expansion" partners for the Pac-10 Conference should UC Davis further upgrade its football program. However, in light of a known animosity of the current leadership of the non-California members of the Pac-10 Conference to add any additional California members, this proposal may never occur. The fact that UC Davis has very little athletic tradition also makes the possibility of it entering the tradition-steeped Pac-10 slim to none.

Whatever happens with Pac-10 Conference expansion, this of course would require a major realignment and would hurt the other football conferences by removing one or more of their top schools. The last cycle of conference realignments, from 2003 to 2005, was triggered by the move of only three schools from the Big East to the ACC—but resulted in a chain reaction that saw no fewer than 14 other Division I-A schools change their conference affiliation.

MHR Scouting Services- 2 Conferences Left!

Jon Tollerud — Thu, 08 May 2008 05:34:07 -0000

Another Updated List. Maybe someone on the list would be willing to switch to one of the Conferences not taken? Thanks for the help guys I will insert myself in here somewhere. Want to Help? Let me know!

ACC- HAI17 and FLABRONCOFAN

Big 12- GIANTS9107 and SLAMDUNKTHEFUNK

Big East- FLABRONCOFAN and RUSS

Big 10- PHANTOM818 and TEDBARTLETT905

Conference USA- MattR

Independents- MN Bronco

Mid-America-

Mountain West- DISCO STU

PAC 10- GIANTS9107 and ZAPPA and ELWAY4PREZ and MIKE CLARK

SEC- EJRUIZ and TEDBARTLETT905

Sun Belt-

Western Athletic- MIKE CLARK

MHR Scouting- PAC 10 Rivalries

Jon Tollerud — Fri, 09 May 2008 17:54:56 -0000

In this edition of our PAC 10 "primer" we will look at the different rivalries that are within the PAC 10. Some of the schools have out of state/ conference rivalries. These are the football rivalries and does not take into account the different rivalries that are throughout the different sports. On to the rivalries...

Rivalries

The Pac-10 is an anomaly in college sports, in that each school within the conference has its own in-state, conference rivalry. One is an intracity rivalry, and another is within the same metropolitan area. These rivalries (and the name given to the football forms) are:

Arizona-Arizona State (winner gets the Territorial Cup)
Washington-Washington State (winner gets the Apple Cup)
Oregon-Oregon State (The Civil War)
Cal-Stanford (The Big Game, winner gets the Stanford Axe)
UCLA-USC (winner gets the Victory Bell)

A look at each of the five football rivalries in the Pac-10:

Territorial Cup

Schools: Arizona and Arizona State

First game: 1899

Series: Arizona leads 44-35-1

At stake: The Territorial Cup, which was presumed gone forever until a few years ago, when it was found in the basement of a Tempe church that was about to be demolished. The Cup is registered with the NCAA as the oldest rivalry trophy in college football.

Greatest moment: In a 1975 contest with the Western Athletic Conference title at stake, John Jefferson made “The Catch” late in the second quarter, helping the Sun Devils to a 24-21 victory. ASU later beat Nebraska in the Fiesta Bowl to finish 12-0 and No. 2 in the country.

The Big Game

Schools: California and Stanford

First game: 1892

Series: Stanford leads 54-44-11

At stake: The Stanford Axe, which was stolen by Cal fans after a baseball game in 1899 and kept in a safe at a Berkeley, Calif., bank until 1933. Then, both schools decided that it would make an ideal trophy for the winner of the annual football game between the schools.

Greatest moment: This is not exactly a brainteaser. Think 1982, a kickoff, five laterals and California’s Kevin Moen crashing into two Stanford band members in the end zone, and you have what has been immortalized as “The Play.”

The Civil War

Schools: Oregon and Oregon State

First game: 1899

Series: Oregon leads 55-45-10

At stake: There currently is no traveling trophy. The Platypus Trophy, which was awarded to the winner in the 1950s and ’60s, was recently rediscovered in a closet at Oregon’s McArthur Court, and there has been a movement to have the schools reinstate it as the game’s prize.

Greatest moment: The Oregon schools were the class of the Pacific Coast Conference in 1957, both finishing with 6-2 conference records. Oregon State won the meeting between the schools, 10-7, but Oregon went to the Rose Bowl because the PCC had a “no-repeat” clause for Pasadena, and the Beavers had been there the season before.

The Victory Bell

Schools: Southern California and UCLA

First game: 1929

Series: USC leads 41-28-7

At stake: The Victory Bell, whose story is similar to that of the Stanford Axe. It belonged to UCLA — and was rung after each Bruins score — until USC students stole it in 1941. It was in hiding for more than a year until both schools agreed to award it to the football game winner.

Greatest moment: UCLA was ranked first and USC fourth when they met in 1967 with a conference — and possibly national — title at stake. O.J. Simpson’s electrifying 64-yard TD run in the fourth quarter was the deciding score in a 21-20 Trojans victory. USC finished No. 1, and UCLA quarterback Gary Beban, who threw for 301 yards against the Trojans despite badly bruised ribs, won the Heisman Trophy.

The Apple Cup

Schools: Washington and Washington State

First game: 1900

Series: Washington leads 64-30-6

At stake: The teams played for the Governor’s Trophy until 1962, when the schools decided that their rivalry should honor perhaps the state’s most famous export — apples.

Greatest moment: Before the Mike Price years at WSU, Washington dominated its in-state rival for national recognition. There was a rare aberration in 1981, when a berth in the Rose Bowl went to the Apple Cup winner. UW again got the best of the Cougars on that day, capitalizing on six turnovers to post a 23-10 victory.

All of the California schools consider each other major rivals, due to the culture clash between Northern and Southern California. USC and Stanford have long-standing football grudge as the only two private institutions in the conference. Cal and UCLA have a rivalry rooted in their shared history as the top programs within the University of California system. Cal and USC also have a long history, having played each other every year in football since 1916.

Oregon and Washington also have an unofficial rivalry (despite recent efforts to give it the name "The Cascade Clash") as the two most prominent schools in the Northwest. All of the Northwest schools consider each other as rivals due to the proximity and long history.

Arizona and New Mexico had a rivalry game played for the Kit Carson Rifle trophy.

Outside Conference Rivalries:

Notre Dame vs. USC

First meeting: 1926
Series record: Notre Dame 42-31-5

USC also has a long-standing rivalry with Notre Dame, meeting 75 times in the battle for the Jewelled Shillelagh. The Irish war club is decorated with rubies for Trojan victories and emeralds for Irish wins. No rivalry matches two teams with more long-standing success. USC and Notre Dame have combined for 23 national championships and 14 Heisman Trophy winners over their histories, and little has changed since the two teams began play. The most dramatic game was "The Comeback" in 1974 when USC erased a 24-0 deficit to No. 1 Notre Dame with a 35-point third quarter on the way to a 55-24 win. The two teams have traded dominance in the series in recent decades, with Notre Dame going 12-0-1 from 1983-95. USC won the next three games, Notre Dame the three after. USC is riding a five-game winning streak, including the infamous "Bush Push" game in 2005. With Pete Carroll and Charlie Weis coaching the teams, there's little chance for this rivalry to fade on the national stage anytime soon.

Washington State also has a rivalry with the University of Idaho, due to the fact that they are located a mere eight miles away from each other. This rivarly is much less fiercely contested than the intra-state rivalry with Washington, and is generally considered to be more important to Idaho's fans than to WSU's.

Poll

What is the biggest Rivalry in the PAC 10

A Far Cry From 2006?

phantom818 — Thu, 08 May 2008 18:07:17 -0000

The Broncos had just finished up a 13-3 playoff season third in the league in points allowed. Denver fell to the eventual Super Bowl champion Steelers in the AFC Championship, but not before taking two interceptions off of Tom Brady in a 27-13 home victory the week before. The Broncos had five Pro Bowlers that year, three on defense. Jake Plummer passed for 3,366 total yards, 18 touchdowns, and a 90.2 quarterback rating. Plummer’s offensive counterpart in the Pro Bowl was Rod Smith, with whom the QB had hooked up with for six touchdowns. The Broncos couldn’t get any better, right?

Wrong. A successful 2006 draft brought in Javon Walker via the trade and Denver decided to take a chance on the injury-ridden star in order to provide some help for Rod Smith. Plummer and Javon immediately connected, and the former Packer finished with 1,084 yards receiving and eight touchdowns. Not only did the draft bring veteran help, but it also began to usher in a new era of youth for the Broncos. Talk about a draft current Broncos fans still go crazy about. Shanahan and the Broncos made a bold move trading up four spots to acquire Jay Cutler, the quarterback of the future. Little did the Denver Broncos know, that future would come very soon.

The Broncos hit on pretty much every pick that year, getting the back-up tight end they needed in Tony Scheffler. Brandon Marshall, Elvis Dumervil, and Domenik Hixon came next in the fourth round and Chris Kuper followed in the fifth: quite a productive draft despite the lack of a third rounder. By the way, Dumervil recorded 8.5 sacks his first season, Scheffler caught four touchdowns, and Marshall caught two of his own for 309 yards. You get the picture. Although the Broncos missed out on the playoffs in 2006 with a 9-7 record, they had to feel good about themselves. Of course, that 2006 season saw a quarterback change that many fans questioned. How could you oust a guy that had led the team to an AFC Championship the year before for this young gun? It turns out Plummer didn’t like the move much either and soon left the Broncos, stubborn and frustrated, and soon retired thereafter. That 2006 season certainly got the wheels in motion.

QUARTERBACK:

The twenty-three year old Vandy gunslinger brought a 7-4 team to a 9-7 record that season. The man he replaced, Jake “The Snake” Plummer had led the team to a 13-3 record the year before. In all fairness, Cutler has yet to truly develop, but I still might take Plummer going into the 06 season more than I’ll take Cutler right now. Remember, Jay was the back up that year, a back up that could absolutely embarrass current benchwarmer Patrick Ramsey in a pick-up game.

Jake had just come off a Pro Bowl season and now had a bunch of new toys and weapons at his disposal. Sure he looked good going in, but coming out of the season was quite a problem for Plummer. Cutler stepped in and did his best, and the Broncos world turned in 2006. It was the start of what was and is to come in Denver.

Cutler has flirted with an 88 QB rating over the past two seasons, but hasn’t gotten his team over the hump and into the playoffs. True, he hasn’t seen as much experience, but JC as the back up to a Pro Bowl quarterback, at least for that one year, intrigues me much more than this season.

Advantage: 2006 Denver Broncos

Jay Cutler was the future and proved a pretty darn good back up. Plummer had just finished a triumphant season, and no one foresaw what was to come with the guy. You can’t argue Pro Bowl numbers. On a season-by-season basis, 06 wins the battle.

WIDE RECEIVERS:

Ah yes, 2006, back when Rod Smith still started and had made his third Pro Bowl the year before. Unfortunately, Smith wouldn’t be making any Pro Bowls after 2005. It would also be the last time the Missouri Southern product would ever start. Newly added Javon Walker – “pre the whining” – quickly caught on and made a huge impression that season. After the draft, fans were rightfully optimistic about Walker moving ahead.

Currently, Marshall (assuming he’s back and healthy, which shouldn’t be a problem) and Jackson match up fairly evenly with that pre-2006 tandem of receivers. However, the one and two spots aren’t where this advantage is decided. Which season did the Denver quarterback have more weapons to work with? Well, Marshall is a constant from both years, who showed some promise as a rookie, but certainly wasn’t expected to start right away. David Kircus’ role in 2006 was clearly defined. Do the Broncos currently have a guy who fits that same role right now? Well, Brandon Stokely is the slot receiver and clearly has more talent and experience than Kircus, so keep looking for that match. Ah yes, the fourth and fifth receiving positions!

The Broncos have a lot of depth at wide receiver, so much so, that that depth is going to have to compete to even receive a role. Competition never hurts. When a team has players like Keary Colbert and Samie Parker battling for those bottom spots, it’ll beat a young Marshall and David Kircus any day. Besides, this edition of the team has a much better slot receiver.

Chalk one up to the current acquisitions from the Denver front office, because much like Walker’s addition, Darrell Jackson should provide a new type of impact for the Broncos as a wide receiver. The Walker move was good, but Denver’s made a lot more moves than that to sure up quality depth at receiver. Also, don’t forget Eddie Royal, another rookie, like Marshall that season, who plans to play an even bigger impact in what the Broncos want to do this coming season. Plus, if the receiver comparison doesn’t sell it for you, take a look at the tight ends.

The current crop of tight ends pushes this one over the top, if the receivers didn’t already. Tony Scheffler began developing that relationship with Cutler in 2006, but he was still a rookie before the season. Daniel Graham trumps the addition of Stephen Alexander before that season. Graham’s a veteran blocker and the coaches love his experience. It certainly helps out the running game. Graham also had better receiving statistics last year than Alexander did in 2005. Scheffler’s the constant, and he continues to improve, but Graham locks this battle up for the current squad.

Advantage: 2008 Broncos

RUNNING BACK:

No Mike Anderson, but lots of Bells in 2006. Unfortunately, TATUM Bell never got back to the 921 yard, eight-touchdown form he showed while backing Mike Anderson the previous season. Bell’s fumbilitis certainly seemed apparent after five ball drops in 2006. The tandem, hot back rotation did yield an 1,000-yard rusher, but the back who rushed for 627 yards got the brunt of the touchdowns. Mike Bell didn’t look too bad in a season of extensive work. Kyle Johnson also looked good at fullback, catching a TD pass that season.

Now, the Broncos have more running backs than they know what to do with. Most of the 1,000 yard seasons of the past may very well have been a product of that great Denver line. In the 7-9 2007 season, a flip-flop of the previous year’s record, no back went 1,000 plus. Did the run game look better coming into 2006 than it does now?

The Broncos were ninth in the league in rushing last season, but eighth after the 2006 campaign. Even better was the Broncos’ place at second in the league after 2005, a statistic that Mike Anderson had a little bit to do with. A one spot drop in rushing seems much better than a six spot drop during 2006. Tatum Bell had performed well in 2005, but there was still some mystery as to whether the young back could take over the following season. Currently, the Broncos have more backs than they know what to do with, but also have a veteran on board.

Selvin Young and Andre Hall have seen experience, but Travis Henry gives Denver what they didn’t have in 2006. New guys Ryan Torain and Peyton Hillis should come in and help this running game as soon as possible. The lack of a clear-cut starter along with depth issues could present a problem for some, but the competition involved this off-season should ensure the best man gets the job: for the time being.

Advantage: 2008 Denver Broncos

OFFENSIVE LINE:

So how about that offensive line? This line had single handedly helped lead the Broncos to their position at second in the league in the rushing department. By the way, Denver was fourth in rushing after 2004, second after 2003, and even fifth after the 2002 season. The list goes on and on. The 2006 year featured a 1,240 yard, six TD season from the likes of Reuben Droughns, a guy currently behind a clutter of backs on the Giants depth chart. At least he has a Super Bowl ring.

The Broncos still have some links to the lines of years past left on the roster, but the decision here is a no-brainer. The Broncos have youth and promise in that youth, but that young talent simply doesn’t match-up with the “sure thing” year in and year out. Ben Hamilton, Tom Nalen, Matt Lepsis, and Dan Neil (eventually Cooper Carlisle)…can ANYONE argue against that line? Eric Pears was even a pleasant surprise during that 2006 season, coming in for Lepsis and starting ten games. Sure the future is really bright, but heading in 06, the future was then. That line’s past spoke for itself. However, think about it, Lepsis’ injury in 2006, like at the quarterback position, brought tidings of a completely new era for the first time.

Advantage: 2006 Denver Broncos

DEFENSIVE LINE:

The Defensive Ends were sack machines in 2006, with Dumervil (8.5), Ekuban (7), Lang (6), and Engleberger (1) getting in on the action. However, what about the end spot heading into the season? That’s what the comparison here is all about.

Well, the coaches loved what they saw in Dumervil, but a lot of the fans didn’t know what the smallish defensive end would bring to the game for Denver. Denver still had Trevor Pryce and Courtney Brown during that 13-3 playoff season. However, Pryce left after 2005 and Brown, a key contributor in the Denver playoff push the previous year, tore his ACL in the preseason. Things did not look all that great, but with a promising rookie and lots of DE depth, they didn’t look all that bad either.

The Broncos still have Ekuban and Engleberger (although Ebenezer is coming of an injury), and Elvis Dumervil has become more of a known quantity and developed into the beast known as “Doom.” Denver once again has depth at the end position, but this time it’s young depth, in the form of Jarvis Moss and Tim Crowder of the 2007 draft. The Broncos amassed eight more sacks than their 2005 total last season, and the pass rush off the ends helped.

The real story in this D-Line comparison, however, is the middle of the line. Denver fans know all about the Broncos’ ineptitude at stopping the run, as the Broncos ranked 30th in the league in rush defense last season, allowing 142.6 yards per game! Interestingly enough, the Broncos actually ranked second in the league in rush defense after 2005. Second in the league! Denver allowed 85.2 yards per game, and Gerard Warren and Michael Myers (particularly Warren) played a big part in that. It also helped their confidence to have some capable linebackers playing behind them. Denver fans had to feel good about the success there, even better than they currently feel after getting a solid 3-4 nose tackle named DeWayne Robertson.

In a division like the AFC West, stopping the run proves VERY important. It certainly helped the Broncos get past formidable AFC West foes on their way to the AFC Championship Game. As it turns out, in that 2006 season, the Broncos were just twelfth in the league in rush defense, still not too shabby. So, the expectations that the rush defense would be there held up pretty well. Think about it. Wouldn’t you feel much better about a rush defense that performed well when called upon than a shaky situation involving a young DT, a new addition, and a player who isn’t considered an every down tackle by many? True, the pass rush might not have been there in 2005. You could certainly argue the point either way from the DE perspective, but stopping the run played a big part in helping the Broncos do what they did.

Advantage: 2006 Broncos

LINEBACKERS:

Gold, Williams, and Wilson: one of the quickest trios of linebackers in the league at the time. The young D.J. Williams showed a lot of bounce and speed off the outside, much like he’s expected to do this coming season. This was also an Ian Gold not too far from his prime, as opposed to an aging somewhat fragile Gold that Denver fans dealt with recently. Finally, Al Wilson, a recipient of a Pro Bowl invitation in 2005, locked down the MLB spot with veteran leadership. Wilson has five Pro Bowl invitations and one All-Pro position to his credit, and looked good coming off of a playoff season - so good, in fact, that he made the Pro Bowl again in 2006.

The leadership was there post 2005, unlike the current situation where a new player will play middle linebacker, and defensive leadership is somewhat hard to come by. Boss Bailey and Niko Koutouvides should no doubt make a contribution to the Broncos defense. This off-season brought Denver a new cast of characters at linebacker. However, when announcers are singling out your team as a team with one of the best linebackers in all of football, you’re going to listen. Denver misses Al Wilson, and the absolute speed of the linebackers in the past gets the call here. The leadership factor and experience in a Bronco uniform seals the deal.

Advantage: 2006 Denver Broncos

CORNERBACK:

Champ Bailey has made the Pro Bowl every year as a Denver Bronco, and every year as an NFL player, save his rookie season. However, Bailey’s Pro Bowl trip last year came more off of name recognition than due to the play on the field. True, teams don’t throw at Champ as often, but he did get burned a few times in 2007 and only logged three interceptions. Now, compare that to an eight interception 2005 season, in which two went back for TDs, capped off by an interception off of Tom Brady in the playoffs.

The Broncos loaded up on CBs in the 2005 draft, and those CBs looked good. Domonique Foxworth intercepted two passes and recovered two fumbles in his rookie campaign. Karl Paymah didn’t have to see the field his first season because of Fox and Cox providing enough depth. Currently, the Broncos have two solid CBs, much like the team did before 2006, except one was only a second year player at the time. The knock on Dre Bly involves his problems tackling now and then. However, Darrent Williams (God bless him and his family) could tackle and could also serve needs in the return game.

So what did happen in 2006?

Well, the Broncos passing defense was poor in 2005, but slowly improved to 21st ranked the next season. Hold on a second, didn’t the Broncos do much better against the pass a year ago? While I do like a younger Bailey, Denver did rank seventh in the NFL against the pass last season. Right now, the Broncos are coming off a much better season statistically against the pass. The stats usually don’t lie. Could the defensive passing successes be a tribute to how bad Denver’s run defense was last season? Possibly.

However, the cornerbacks on the roster now are pretty much the same as they were in 2006 (with the unfortunate loss of Williams as the only difference), and it’s hard to pass up more experienced guys for that same group with all the flash and youth a few years ago. The promise was there after 2005, but Denver fans have found out a little bit more in terms of their secondary, particularly at the cornerback position. Domonique Foxworth was signed and he’ll be ready to handle the heat at the third cornerback position, should he play either there or in dime situations.

Advantage: 2008 Denver Broncos

SAFETIES:

John Lynch is the constant at the safety position and the fact that he’s aged a few years doesn’t matter. He has also made the Pro Bowl every year he has been a Bronco. Lynch still has the instincts of a top safety, even if the youth isn’t there anymore, and instincts and vision can do a lot for you as a safety. Plus, the nine time Pro Bowler has motivation this off-season to prove people wrong.

This segment of the debate then, dials in on the strong safety position. Nick Ferguson had five interceptions and recovered a fumble in a respectable 2005 season in which he started all sixteen games. Now, I don’t feel one extreme or the other towards Ferguson and believe he was dependable enough, as Broncos fans knew what they were getting with him in most cases. Also, stats aren’t going to play that big a part here, because Marlon McCree has seen mainly back-up time in San Diego. Broncos’ fans don’t know who will start next season, but bringing McCree into town in the first place indicated that the Broncos had some needs. Did Denver fill those needs? I’m not so sure just yet. I’d have to say I probably would’ve felt more comfortable going into 2006, when the safety position wasn’t as much of an issue or question mark as it is now.

Advantage: 2006 Broncos

So, based on my selections and breakdown above, the final advantages shake out as follows:

OFFENSIVE ADVANTAGE: EVEN

Don’t worry; I’m not about to call anything even here. While I like the known success behind center in Jake Plummer, Jay Cutler has seen some experience, and even if he hasn’t been as good recently, he’s got a bunch more weapons to help him out. True, the offensive line was better in 2005-2006, but I have the feeling all these receivers will add a little more emphasis to the passing game in Denver. The Broncos were eleventh in the league in total offense last year, but were fifth after 2005.

However, as the new pieces to the puzzle were added after the 05 championship run, you could sense that something was going to happen. Cutler and Plummer together weren’t really going to work out…were they? Should we really put our faith in these two young Bells at running back? Javon played really well last season, but who have we got out there to help at wide receiver? Those are all questions the Denver fan had to ask himself or herself following that successful season, questions that don’t apply much now. Is it optimism or loyalty that makes me want to award the offensive advantage to this current roster going into the season?

AFTER FURTHER REVIEW: 2008 Denver Broncos

* Note: The Broncos did drop to 21st in the NFL in total offense during the 2006 season, but the debate here is who to give the advantage to PRE 2006 and PRE 2008.

DEFENSIVE ADVANTAGE: 2006 Broncos

The pre-2006 Broncos get the call here three to one. Fans had to be feeling a lot better about the defense then than they are now. Even though there have been some really key additions this off-season, returning starters are always good to have, and successful returning starters at that. I’m not saying that the current crop of defensive players won’t be better, but the Broncos after that playoff run actually had a pretty strong defense. Denver was fifteenth in total D that season, as opposed to 19th in the league just a year ago.

* Note: I thought it’d be interesting to note and focus on the complete reversal of the Denver defense from then to now. The Broncos went from second-ranked to thirtieth-ranked in rush defense, but also went from twenty ninth to seventh in passing defense.

THE FINAL CALL: 2006 Denver Broncos

If you add up all the individual advantages, you’ll see that I have the 2006 Broncos taking the cake, and that’s pretty much how I see it. Any “genius” could have said that. Denver was coming off of a huge playoff run, had made some great additions though the draft, and made just enough in free agency. The current Broncos roster does have an advantage over that squad in certain areas, and even has some of the members of the pre-2006 team. However, the leadership that team brought and its experience is hard to argue. There are too many questions surrounding this current team. Besides, Needless to say, optimism was pretty high then.

That 2006 season was only two years ago, but even so, things looked a tiny bit different than they do now. Okay, well the actual amount of difference is certainly apparent. Denver was coming off success one season, but starting the “rebuilding” process heading into the other. The Broncos successfully capped off a mini-era post Elway and pre Cutler with a playoff run and successful performance in a competitive division.

Take yourself back in time and don’t focus on what Denver actually did in 2006, but what your impressions were after that 13-3 year in 2005, before the 06 season. It’s funny how the first impressions of this team that finished 7-9 in a poor AFC West conference stack up against a team that finished on top of a powerful conference a few years ago (the Chiefs didn’t even make the playoffs at 10-6 and the Chargers went 9-7 that year). Just as the team slid downhill a bit after an AFC Championship run, maybe it’ll rise up after a disappointing 7-9 finish. After breaking both teams down, one realizes that the current roster is not all that far off from the one a few years ago, despite the new names. Then again, maybe I’m just optimistic.

MILE HIGH SCOUTING REPORT

Jon Tollerud — Wed, 30 Apr 2008 23:43:19 -0000

Welcome to the MHR Scouting Services for 2008

We are just starting out and are looking for volunteers to help with the project. There are a few of you who have volunteered already so this will just be a quick note as to what we are looking to accomplish.

What this project is attempting to accomplish is scout through college teams for guys who we feel would do well as a Denver Bronco. If you have never watched a College game or dont understand the rivalries and lingo as well as all the stuff connected with College Football, dont worry, the MHR Scout team with the help of the editors are going to put together articles on What it takes to be a Bronco from Quarterback to Kicker, THe Lingo of College Football and Scouting as well as Introductions to Conferences, Rivalries and the teams themselves. We will also be giving a list of prosepects from each division so that you are not out there scouting Freshman who will not enter the draft and so forth. Once all this gets into place we are hoping to start the scouting. Are you interested? Feel free to sign up at the bottom or contact myself or the editors. We are hoping to at least cover the Big Schools and give each person no more than 6 schools to cover. The more people who join the less work for others! Join today!

ACC- HAI17 and FLABRONCOFAN

Big 12- GIANTS9107 and SLAMDUNKTHEFUNK

Big East- FLABRONCOFAN and RUSS

Big 10- PHANTOM818 and TEDBARTLETT905

Conference USA- MattR

Independents-

Mid-America-

Mountain West- DISCO STU

PAC 10- GIANTS9107 and ZAPPA and ELWAY4PREZ and MIKE CLARK

SEC- EJRUIZ and TEDBARTLETT905

Sun Belt-

Western Athletic- MIKE CLARK

Offensive Minutiae

TedBartlett905 — Thu, 08 May 2008 05:20:27 -0000

Have you ever been watching a game and wondered why a team doesn't use a formation that you think would be great? Why does a team send players in motion. What about what a QB is looking at when he is under center? What does audible mean, other than "able to be heard?" Are there audibles that can't be heard?

In the spirit of Hoosierteacher's great recent work explaining defensive concepts and methodologies, I've decided to put some general football educational items down related to offense. Please add your thoughts on anything I include or don't include, as I'd like this to be a value-adding discussion for all MHR readers.

Formation Rules and Constraints

Most people know that a full complement of players on the field at any one time consists of 11 players. It is required that seven players occupy the offensive line of scrimmage at all times. That leaves four players in the offensive backfield. You can have more than 7 directly on the line, and less than 4, but only the two End men on the line of scrimmage are eligible to receive a forward pass, regardless of how many line up there. Lining up inside the end man is called being covered. In the case of this illustration, we'll call those two players the Split End (SE) and Tight End (TE.)

The 4 backs consist of a Quarterback (QB,) a Halfback (HB,) a Fullback (FB,) and a Flanker (FL.) Note that the term Wide Receiver (WR) is used interchangeably for SEs and FLs, but Split End and Flanker are the more descriptive and technically correct terms.

This is a pretty standard two running back personnel grouping I've described. Each of these players is also eligible to receive a forward pass. Different teams use different groups of players together, and our Broncos are especially known for changing their groupings up. The key point to take from this is that there are always seven men on the line, and four men in the back field, and that the two end men on the line and the four men behind the line of scrimmage are the only players who are eligible to receive a forward pass. This is the only real constraint to formation design.

Motion

Only one player lined up in the backfield may go in motion. Such a player is permitted to take one step forward and then must move laterally parallell to the line of scrimmage. If you ever see a bunch of players moving at once, that's not motion. That's known as a shift, and those players are required to come to a set position for at least one second before the ball is snapped. Only one man may be in motion at the snap of the ball.

There are three main reasons to send a player in motion. The biggest historical reason is that it tips off the QB if the defense will play zone coverage or man-to-man. If a specific defensive player follows the man in motion, that's a good hint that the coverage will be man-to-man. Defensive coaches have gotten smart in disguising coverages, and you can't always tell from motion, but you can get an idea. The second reason is to get a receiver a free release from the line of scrimmage with a lateral running start. The third reason is to get a blocker a running start, particularly when a fullback or tight end lined up in the backfield is to isolate on an outside linebacker to lead an outside run.

A QB's Pre-snap Reads

I can't fully do this topic justice in terms of its complexity, because different coaches teach QBs to look at different things, but I can provide a flavor of what a typical QB is looking at before a snap. The main focus is on the positioning and individual abilities of defensive personnel.

The first question is, how many defenders are playing close to the line of scrimmage? ("in the box") If the answer is seven men, the QB may consider changing a play to a run. If the answer is eight or more, a pass sounds like a favorable matchup. The key to this question is the positioning of the Strong Safety.

Next, the QB should ascertain the positioning of coverage personnel like Cornerbacks and Safeties. Are the CBs far off the line? Are they playing inside or outside coverage technique? Are the safeties playing wide, or hugging the hashmarks? Is there an opportunity to throw a deep ball against single coverage? (Provided the down and distance is appropriate.)

The third big question is, is there any indication of a blitz or an emphasis on a type of coverage (man-to-man or zone)? This is huge, because it leads to changing of pass routes and also blocking schemes, sometimes. Maybe the QB wants a TE to stay in and pick up the OLB he sees ready blitz. Maybe he wants the FL to break off his route short because his CB looks like he's blitzing (this is called a hot route.) As previously mentioned, motion can help tip the defense's plans.

The fourth major question becomes, is there a man-to-man matchup that a defender can't possibly handle? Is a linebacker going to try to stick with Brandon Stokley downfield? Is a little smurfy CB going to try to defend Tony Scheffler in the red zone?

The final point I'd teach is to determine if there is an inherent formational weakness in a defense as it is lined up presnap. If I have three fast WRs to the left, and the defense has its two CBs on either side of the field like they're just going to run cover-2, they're in trouble on the left side against all that speed. The same goes if you have a bunch of tight ends to one side that you want to run to, and the defense doesn't line up accordingly. All those TEs can clear the way for a long run to the under-staffed side of the field.

More calculations are being done than just these five listed above, but these are the main points of emphasis for a QB. A really advanced QB like Peyton Manning almost always gets his team in the correct play for what they're about to face from a defense.

Audibles and Sight Adjustments

As I teased in the opening paragraph, an audible is verbal notification between a QB and other offensive players that a play is changed from what was called in the huddle. Audibles can be elaborate, like you see from Peyton Manning, who essentially calls his own plays at the line of scrimmage for the Colts. More often than not though, especially with younger QBs, an audible will be what's called a "check with me." If a pass play is called in the huddle, often a running play that fits the personnel grouping on the field will also be called as a check with me. The QB has the option at the line of scrimmage to keep the pass play that was called, or switch to the run play, based on the look he gets from the defense. One phrase can also trigger the changing of the play ,if everybody knows what the check with me play was, and this cuts down on mixed signals. This is essentially partial autonomy for the QB from the offensive coordinator. Sometimes, you'll even see a QB even look to the sideline for a hand signal from a coach.

A sight adjustment is typically something that QBs and WRs do together, separately. This is the case of a play changing with no words spoken. The idea is that on pass plays, routes and releases of receivers should be adjusted based on the positioning of the Cornerback (CB) in coverage. If the CB is playing far off the line of scrimmage, the sight adjustment will likely be to a WR screen. If a CB is playing bump and run, and it looks like safety help is far away, the sight adjustment would be to go deep. For inside coverage technique, the receiver would take an outside release, and vice versa for outside coverage technique. Down and distance situations also come into play, somewhat. That WR screen doesn't look so good on 3rd and 12. The trick is, QBs and WRs need to be on the same page with this stuff, and that takes time playing together and trust. This is the main reason that even the most talented rookie WRs tend to take awhile to get going as NFL players, as there is a significant mental component to what they're doing in the NFL. Both QB and WR need to read the coverage, and they need to come to both the same read and the same adjustment.

I'll write about more of this kind of stuff as time goes on if this post is well-received and there seems to be interest in it. As I mentioned before, please feel free to add to the discussion and challenge anything I have written tonight. We'll all become better-informed Broncos fans together.

ahhh shucks

TommyTSlice — Wed, 07 May 2008 23:38:42 -0000

Man i just read on ESPN.com that the Dallas Cowboys get to be on HBO's Hard Knocks camp show..

If you guys havent caught this show in the past couple of seasons its been pretty entertaining...

It gives an in depth look at teams training camps and position battles and undrafted free agents fighting hard for jobs....It also shows a couple of in depth look at pre season games....

I really enjoyed the show last year even though it was the Chiefs but it just is a well made show about the greatest sport on the Earth.

Broncos Vs. Raiders Rivalry!

chavez — Wed, 07 May 2008 21:46:40 -0000

If someone owed you $150,000 and said that they would pay you that money only if you did not coach the Denver Broncos would you do it? Your damn skippy especialy if it was Al Davis you were defying.

Would you pay a broke down reciever $55million, $16million guaranteed, you would if your Al Davis!!

I remeber going to "The Final Monday night game at Mile High Stadium" against the Raiders. Watching Ian Gold blast through the middle of the line and blocking the punt, picking the ball up and running it in for a touchdown to give the Broncos the lead. Seeing Brian Griese play like a true soldier with a bum shoulder, throwing a slant pass to Rod Smith to set them up for the game winning field goal kicked by Jason Elam with no time left on the clock. Those were the days.

Now the opening season game is against "That other team" and we should all unite and do a true Raider Hater Week, that leads up to Orange Monday. Shut Javon Walker down and try to get Shannahan his money back with a win.

No respect for the AFC west

HBBeough — Wed, 07 May 2008 00:23:27 -0000

Horse Tracks missed this link on Cinco de Mayo.

ESPN's PETER smoKINGcrack has released his early NFL rankings, check it out:

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2008/writers/peter_king/05/02/rankings/index.html

Cleveland #9, Carolina #10, Buffalo #13, the Jets #14 and…

Denver #23. Wow. That’s pretty sorry considering he has Oakland #30 and KC #31. That’s four wins right there.

He’s saying Denver will be worse than last year. Myself, I think they addressed most of their problems (coach Bates) and the young D-line will have the experience of one year to work with. I wish I could bet this guy some money.

It is no wonder ESPN let this piece of work fly under the radar. I seriously had to check the date on this to make sure I had the right year.

This will give me something to think about as the season goes on next year. Denver plays all the teams I mentioned below the link as rankings I thought were questionable and they play the Saints (King#16) and Tampa (#17) too.

Vegas lines have Denver at 38 to 1, 17th or 18th rank. The Browns: 13th-16th, Carolina and Buffalo 21st-24th and the Jets 25th or 26th.

We’ll see.

Wide Receivers - Help Solve the Mystery

hoosierteacher — Tue, 06 May 2008 20:31:54 -0000

For the purposes of this discussion, let's consider that there are three starting WR positions.

The #1 WR is the best WR on the team. He almost always lines up on the offense's right side (often called the strong side, since that is the side that often has an additional player, the "tight end").
The #2 WR on the left (weak) side may not be the best receiver, but if the other team has to double cover the #1 WR, then the #2 can shine.
The slot receiver (#3) lines up between the #1 receiver and the TE (in most formations). When the team is more likely to need a pass, this is the extra guy that gets brought in. Teams with a solid slot receiver can rip apart defenses that don't have good CB depth. Conversely, a team with good CB depth wins a lot of match-ups if a team doesn't have a good slot.

Consider further that most teams use a depth chart tactic called "sandbagging". Sandbagging means that if a vacancy is made because of injury, you DON'T move the rest of the depth chart up. You just fill in the position with a back-up and leave everyone else in their positions. For example, when Walker got hurt the Broncos moved Stokely up to #1 from #3, left Marshall at #2, and bumped Martinez up to #3. Stokely had a much harder job playing against #1 CBs (though he held his ground very well), but Marshall stayed in place. Unfortunately, Stokely is not an every down WR. Shanahan admited as much when he said that Stokely was placed in an unfortunate position. Stokely is one of (if not THE best) slot receivers in the League, having played the same role to murderous effect in INDY.

But now Denver has a large roster of WRs thanks to FA and the draft. Let's share some thoughts on the possibilities.

Let's start with Marshall. He's a lock to be the #1 WR. He run blocks well in accordance with the Denver requirement, can fight for the ball, run over defenders, break initial tackles, and loves to gain yards after the catch. He's a tough "possession" receiver. He's still very young, and a rising star in Denver. No mysery here at all.

Let's also establish what is going to happen in the slot. Stokely has great hands, and a nice combination of agility and power. He is a little older, but because of experience can run excellent routes. Because he isn't effective on multiple downs he is excellent at slot. He is considered one of the best.

Backing up Stokely should be 2nd round draft pick-up Eddie Royal. He has decent hands, but has terrific speed and agility. He (like Stokely) plays better if not over used. He will likely return punts, and will likely take over when Stokely hangs up the cleats. He might also compete with Martinez for the #4 role.

The big mystery is at #2 and depth. Most folks (based on a terrific recent article by Super7 ) will want speedy Darrell Jackson. He sounds like a good deal to me! Some folks may want to put in a plug for FA acquisitions Samie Parker from KC, or Keary Colbert from NC, but I lean towards Jackson for now.

Jackson can spread the field with speed verticaly, making possesion style receivers Marshall and Stokely more effective. If anyone likes Colbert or (a little less likely) Parker for the #2 spot, I hope you'll chime in. There may be some good thoughts in that direction.

As stated earlier, I wonder who gets the start at #4. My guess is that you keep Martinez there and keep Royal at slot back-up. If you have a rookie playing one position and backing up another that doubles the plays he has to learn. Let him take punt returns and back Stokely at slot. Give Martinez further chances to grow at #4.

I like Colbert to back Marshall (same basic style, so less adjutment for the coaching staff in mid game if an injury happens). I like Parker to back Jackson (same thinking).

Those are just my opinions, and I'll bet a lot of members have some differing thoughts or some considerations that I didn't even think of.

Take it away gang!

Home Field Advantage

firstfan — Tue, 06 May 2008 20:04:08 -0000

For over twenty years the Denver Broncos enjoyed a significant advantage playing at home. This was due to 1) Altitude and 2) Noise. Much has been written about why this has been deteriorating since the move to the new stadium. I offer the following thoughts. Warning: This article is full of opinions. They are my opinions. And you know what opinions are like.

As schemes and tactics evolve on both sides of the ball we see many more substitutions. Specialty players are used in specific situations. This means players are coming off the field and getting oxygen. A Belicheck approach here might be to switch opposing teams’ oxygen bottles with laughing gas, but we probably shouldn’t do that. I will leave the Xs and Os up to ht, but it appears to this casual observer that by running more no huddle we can force defenses to keep the same players on the field longer and therefore wear them out faster. It goes without saying that we should be the best conditioned team in the NFL. Yes, even our “Big Uglies” should be in top shape.

As for the noise factor, a few days ago Guru correctly stated

“The “footprint” of the new stadium is twice the size of the old. So the same amount of people have to make double to noise to make it seem so loud. The fans were right on top of the field in “old Mile High”, everything is so spread out in the new stadium it simply is that much harder to get that loud…” TSG 5/5/08

What can we do about it? We are not likely to make twice as much noise but we can increase the noise level from what it currently is. Noise is not entirely unlike vision. When you go into a dark room it takes a few seconds for your eyes to adjust. The same thing happens with our ears to a much smaller extent. We get used to a certain ambient level of noise. This is why a large bang in a quiet room startles but the same noise at a rock concert is overpowered. As fans we need to be knowledgeable about when to be loud and when to be quiet, and then execute!

It has been stated that there is a difference in the kind of fan we have today. I think this is true. The fans at Mile High tended to be more football savy. They were beer and hot dog guys and gals. One writer characterized todays Bronco fan as more wine and cheese. I subit the wine and cheese crowd can be educated. We need to recreate the culture of the twelfth man. We expect a great deal from our team and I feel they have the right to expect the best from us as fans.

We need to get Klis and Kisla and Paige and the other Denver writers to start educating the fans about behavioral expectations. I will never forget the time at Mile High when I actually HEARD John Elway’s famous hard count. The fans of that era were smart, savy, and understood their impact as the twelfth man. When Cutler steps up under center you should be able to hear a mouse fart at the twenty yard line. At the snap of the ball, mayham. Conversely, when Phyllis and his merry men line up the center should not even be able to hear the cadence. And keep it up the entire game. We need to be in game shape too!!

We need to start getting in fan shape now with twelfth man education. I urge all true Bronco fans to attend training camp. The pre season games should be for getting the wrinkles out of our vocal support. A year or two ago I actually saw some fans trying to start the wave when WE had the ball!! Elimninate those errors in pre season and be ready for Sandy Eggo on Sept. 14th.

Go Broncos!!!

I need advice.

Zappa — Tue, 06 May 2008 02:52:26 -0000

Ok, here is my dilemma. I have tickets to the Raider-Bronco game on opening day, but everyone I've talked too seems to think I would be nuts to wear my lucky Elway jersey to the game.

Does any Bronco fan here have any experience at all going to a Raider-Bronco game in Oakland? Would it be smart for me to wear nondescript clothing? lol F-ing fader fans...can't even let other people enjoy a game. It wouldn't bother me as much if I knew any potential fight would be fair...of course it wouldn't.

I might just have to say F it and wear it anyway...I paid the arm and leg to be there God nabbit! Ah screw it...you only live once right? I'll just have to make sure my brother brings his XD and CCW Permit just in case those convicts make a prison shank out of a plastic coffee lid. ;)

I just want to have fun with my brother and enjoy the experience...but all these comments online and in RL have started to make me a bit paranoid and its pissing me off. So if anyone has any thoughts I would appreciate it.

Or perhaps I should just wear a clear plastic bag over my entire body...

Ahh funny stuff

TommyTSlice — Tue, 06 May 2008 01:49:11 -0000

As me and my roommates were watching tv yesterday we were trying to predict who would win all of the divisions and the order each team would finish in.....

So we get through The AFC East, North, and South then we got the West....My order was Chargers, Broncos, Raiders, Chiefs but maybe with a possible denver team surprising people like my Oakland A's have so far this season.... This is where it starts to get funny...

My roommates start discussing my order and change it to....Chargers, Raiders, Chiefs, and Broncos....

I started busting laughing because this just shows me that i live with guys who dont know a thing about football...

They were saying stuff like; " Oh Cutler has diabetes now he is gonna fall of the face of the earth blah, blah, blah" and "Dude the Raiders have hella good guys now, their gonna be sick" and "Oh the Chiefs had the best draft ever and now they will be hella good"

I pretty much just laughed cause these our two guys who like the 49ers and our just jealous that they didnt wait a year for Cutler and Grab Marshall...

These our guys who thinks Nate Clements is better the Champ...

All i can do is just laugh at their non logic comments so i thought i would share it with you guys......

I don't get something.

amirebram — Mon, 05 May 2008 16:59:36 -0000

There have been a ton of top 10 DL picks that have turned into busts in the past. There have also been some late round successes. Typical of every position. When I think about it, most of these busts seem to have one thing in common, and that is the quality of their college team. I just wanted to see what you guys think.

An NFL example of what I am trying to say would be the Titan's D-line last year. When fat Albert was playing, they looked like an elite unit. Their DE looked great. But when their top dog got injured, their D-line looked no better than ours.

Extending the analogy, I want to ask, were Dorsey and Ellis really that good? Ellis' fellow DE was taken in the 2nd round this year. His fellow DT is projected as a top 10 pick next year. They were backed by the top LB corp in the nation (Rivers, Maliuga, and Cushing). Would Ellis looked half as good playing on Vandy's D-line? Same goes for Dorsey. There were two other top 10 talent D-linemen playing alongside him. Sims had Groves and Marks on the same line as him.

The only DT who really showed up all on his own was the guy from Notre Dame, Laws.

Perhaps it is important to look at the way these guys play on these all-star teams to really get a better idea about who they are.

* * * * * * *

Something else that has been bothering me for a while is how everyone says Doom is small for a DE. I agree a 100% that at 5'11" he is a good 4" short of the ideal hight, but he is not small. When most people say small, they mean too light and thin to take the pounding in the NFL. Or too light to be effective. But let's take a look around.

Robert Mathis (Colts)--starter-- 6'2" 247

Adewale Ogunleye (Bears)--starter-- 6'4" 260

Strahan (Giants)--star-- 6'5" 255

Osi Umenyiora (giants)--starter-- 6'3" 261

Travis LaBoy (cardinals now)--starter-- 6'3" 260

Gaines Adams (Bucs) --top 10 pick-- 6'5" 258

Our own Elvis Dumervil-------5'11" 260

Just look at the numbers here. Doom is heavier than half these guys and shorter than all of them by a good margin. He has a more solid built than every single guy on this list. How is it that some of you guys think Strahan who 6 inches taller and 5 pounds lighter can be an every down player, but Doom can't?

By the way, I agree 100% with anyone who says that Dumervil would probably be more effective if he only played about half the defensive snaps in a game ... but that is true of every D-lineman. It stops them from getting worn down and gassed.

D - Al = ?

HBBeough — Sun, 04 May 2008 23:10:54 -0000

From week 2 to week 7 of the 2006 season (including a game against Tom Brady and the Patriots) the Denver defense held their opponents to single digit scoring and consecutive victories even though the O was sputtering. But then something happened and the unit failed to keep anyone under 10 from that point on and in only 7 of those 27 games kept the other team under 20. At first it was due to some good competition (Indy, Pittsburgh & San Diego) but then on December 3rd Al Wilson was carted off the field with a neck injury and the run defensive has never been the same… or even close. The final game of the season (when they still had a chance to make the playoffs) Frank Gore ran through the Bronco’s D like they were the “second leading brand” on a paper towel commercial.

Enter Jim Bates. Brought in to fix the ailing defensive corps Bates began pounding his round pegs into the square holes of the Broncos D in 2007. His archaic scheme was designed for enormous defensive linemen to “hold the point of attack” rather than penetrate. Because this was not the kind of team he had, Mr. Bates went shopping. He looked to bring in anyone that weighed more than a Volkswagen and ship out anyone that cheated by jumping in a gap. The result was a lot of meat up front not making any tackles, a group of linebackers out of position and defensive backs spending far too much energy supporting the run. Mercifully Jim Bates was aborted after the 2007 season and his hired heft wasn’t invited back.

So, after the dust settled from 2007 here is what you have:

D-line: Stocked with young players with a lot of potential (Jarvis, Elvis, Thomas & Crowder) with a quality DE in Ekuban coming back from an injury and a free agent DT (Robertson) that has played through bad knees.

Defensive backs: A veteran squad that is proven but may not have many years left

Linebackers: DJ Williams moving back to his ideal spot, Champ’s brother Boss will upgrade Ian Gold and Niko Koutouvides coming in to play the middle. What should we expect from Niko Koutouvides? I have no idea. Seattle bloggers either say he didn’t start because Lofa Tatupu is so good of that they got Tatupu because Niko wasn’t good enough. If he struggles the Broncos will have a mess and the conspiracy theorists will begin to talk about Al Wilson emerging from retirement like a phoenix.

So my point is that there are reasons to be optimistic but in general this defense has much to prove. At least the challenge is being presented to young athletes hungry for success instead of past-successful athletes who are just hungry. One way or another they have to be better than 28th in points against next year. I can’t remember a Denver D that was so vulnerable to the run.