Studs and Duds

The best and worst of college football’s elite:

Quarterback

Stud: Tim Tebow, Florida — At this point, you’re either drinking the Kool-Aid or in denial.

Dud: Jevan Snead, Mississippi — From the fringe to the firing line. Enjoy wearing a target.

Tailback

Stud: DeMarco Murray, Oklahoma — If he played in last year’s title game, nobody’s talking Tebow.

Dud: C.J. Spiller, Clemson — Only “Lightning” last year came from the Alabama side of the scoreboard.

Wide receiver

Stud: Dez Bryant, Oklahoma State — He’s the hardest cover in college ball since Randy Moss.

Dud: Dezmon Briscoe, Kansas — There’s only one Dez, brother.

Tight end

Stud: Jermaine Gresham, Oklahoma — “Mismatch” is 6-foot-6, 260 and a shade under 4.6.

Dud: D.J. Williams, Arkansas — At 6-2, Williams is a tiny end.

Offensive lineman

Stud: Ciron Black, LSU — All-SEC staple (6-5, 325) has made 40 career starts at left tackle.

Dud: Josh McNeil, Tennessee — Three-year starter lost his job to a walk-on in camp.

Defensive end

Studs: George Selvie, South Florida — Wrap your head around 59.5 career tackles for a loss.

Dud: Jerry Hughes, TCU — You can’t start a Heisman campaign for a Mountain West defensive end.

Defensive tackle

Stud: Marvin Austin, North Carolina — Give a shout-out to a local boy (Ballou High School).

Dud: Terrence Cody, Alabama — He obviously knows how to bull-rush a buffet.

Linebacker

Stud: Brandon Spikes, Florida — Squint just right at this braided beast and he looks like the Predator.

Dud: Joe Pawelek, Baylor — Solid but very slow for a preseason All-American.

Cornerback

Stud: Florida corps — Take your pick; conservative estimates say five Gators defensive backs are NFL-bound.

Dud: Ras-I Dowling, Virginia — Not even the best corner UVa has (Vic Hall).

Safety

Stud: Eric Berry, Tennessee — Pick-six machine will also light you up (just ask Knowshon Moreno).

Dud: Taylor Mays, USC — No picks in two seasons. … He is a linebacker.

Coach

Stud: Nick Saban, Alabama — Just wait until he’s playing with the same talent deck as Urban Meyer.

Dud: Charlie Weis, Notre Dame — Take away the recession, and he gets pink-slipped.

Coordinator

Stud: Will Muschamp, Texas (defense) — He is heir apparent to Mack Brown’s throne.

Dud: Clint Bowen, Kansas (defense) — Jayhawks averaged 33.4 points last year… and lost five games.

Staff

Stud: Tennessee — There’s no denying the credentials; it’s time to see some results.

Dud: Michigan — Ultimate in lack of institutional control is getting ratted out by your own players.

Conference

Stud: Big 12 — SEC is stronger at bottom, but Big 12 has three legit title contenders.

Dud: ACC — 10-16 in bowls since 2006 with one BCS victory and not a whiff of the national title.

Schedule

Stud: Florida State — Opponents for 2009 posted a 101-55 record last season, and 10 went bowling.

Dud: Army — List of 2009 foes reads like a who’s not who; headliners are Rutgers and Air Force.

Bowl

Stud: BCS title game — Jan. 7 at Rose Bowl; prediction: Texas vs. Florida.

Dud: Motor City Bowl — Nothing screams Prozac like Detroit on Dec. 26.

Uniforms

Stud: Texas — It’s tough to top the sleek, simple look of the Longhorns’ helmets.

Dud: UNLV — Thanks to Mrs. Brown’s first-grade class at Carson City Elementary.

Mascot (retired category)

Stud: Ralphie — You’ve got a coed in a clown suit; Colorado has a one-ton raging beast.

Dud: Uga IX (or whatever) — Do you need to sit on a pile of ice to survive the game?

Stadium (retired category)

Stud: Florida — Really called the Swamp because all 90,000 rednecks are flooded and salty.

Dud: Michigan — You can’t get 110,000 people that quiet for mass in St. Peter’s Square.

BLUEST CHIPS

Top 25 incoming recruits in the nation, according to a consensus of rankings from Rivals.com, ESPN and Scout.com:

Player Pos (Ht, Wt)School

1. Bryce Brown RB (6-0, 215) Tennessee

2. Matt Barkley QB (6-2, 230) USC

3. Russell Shepard QB (6-1, 188) LSU

4. Manti Te’o LB (6-2, 244) Notre Dame

5. Jacobbi McDaniel DT (6-0, 267) Florida St.

6. Trent Richardson RB (5-11, 220) Alabama

7. Jelani Jenkins LB (6-1, 200) Florida

8. Rueben Randle WR (6-3, 201 LSU

9. Craig Loston DB (6-2, 193) LSU

10. Gary Brown DT (6-4, 275) Florida

11. Vontaze Burfict LB (6-3, 245) Arizona St.

12. Devon Kennard DE (6-3, 255) USC

13. Dre Kirkpatrick DB (6-3, 185) Alabama

14. Garrett Gilbert QB (6-4, 207) Texas

15. Andre Debose WR (5-11, 176) Florida

16. Mason Walters OL (6-6, 300) Texas

17. Nico Johnson LB (6-3, 225) Alabama

18. Aaron Murray QB (6-1, 206) Georgia

19. Branden Smith DB (5-11, 171) Georgia

20. Dorian Bell LB (6-1, 220) Ohio State

21. Xavier Nixon OL (6-6, 285) Florida

22. Christine Michael RB (5-11, 206) Texas A&M

23. Darius Winston DB (6-0, 180) Arkansas

24. Greg Reid DB (5-9, 175) Florida St.

25. J. McFarland DT (6-2, 296) Oklahoma

ENCORE ATTEMPTS

Returning AP All-Americans:

FIRST TEAM

Sam Bradford (Jr.), QB, Oklahoma

Dez Bryant (Jr.), WR, Oklahoma State

Terrence Cody (Sr.), DT, Alabama

Brandon Spikes (Sr.), LB, Florida

Taylor Mays (Sr.), S, USC

Eric Berry (Jr.), S, Tennessee

SECOND TEAM

Colt McCoy (Sr.), QB, Texas

Jermaine Gresham (Sr.), TE, Oklahoma

Brandon Carter (Sr.), G, Texas Tech

Jerry Hughes (Sr.), DE, TCU

Gerald McCoy (Jr.), DT, Oklahoma

THIRD TEAM

Tim Tebow (Sr.), QB, Florida

Kendall Hunter (Jr.), RB, Oklahoma State

Jacquizz Rodgers (So.), RB, Oregon State

Jordan Shipley (Sr.), WR, Texas

Rob Gronkowski (Jr.), TE, Arizona

George Selvie (Sr.), DE, South Florida

Mark Herzlich (Sr.), LB, Boston College

Sean Weatherspoon (Sr.), LB, Missouri

Rolando McClain (Jr.), LB, Alabama

Kai Forbath (Jr.), K, UCLA

DOMINANT DOZEN

The best records in the Football Bowl

Subdivision since the start of the 2000 season, including bowl games:

Team Record (win pct) Titles

1. Boise State 98-17 (.852) 0

2. Texas 97-18 (.843) 1

3. Oklahoma 102-19 (.843) 1

4. USC 93-22 (.809) 2

5. Ohio State 91-23 (.798) 1

6. Georgia 90-26 (.776) 0

7. LSU 90-27 (.769) 2

8. Virginia Tech 89-29 (.754) 0

9. Florida 87-29 (.750) 2

10. TCU 83-28 (.748) 0

11. Miami 83-29 (.741) 1

12. Louisville 79-33 (.705) 0

THE A-LIST

The 25 best winning percentages among active Football Bowl Subdivision coaches (three or more years of experience):

Coach, school Seasons Record Pct

1. Chris Petersen, Boise St.3 35-4 .897

2. Pete Carroll, Southern Cal8 88-15 .854

3. Urban Meyer, Florida 8 83-17 .830

4. Bob Stoops, Oklahoma 10 109-24 .820

5. Jim Tressel, Ohio St. 8 83-19 .814

6. Mark Richt, Georgia 8 82-22 .788

7. Joe Paterno, Penn St. 43 383-127 - 3 .750

8. Bobby Bowden, Florida St.43 368-123 - 4 .747

9. Bronco Mendenhall, BYU 4 38-13 .745

10. Bobby Petrino, Arkansas5 46-16 .742

11. Steve Spurrier, S. Car. 19 170-62-2 .731

12. Gary Patterson, TCU 8 73-27 .730

13. Kyle Whittingham, Utah 4 37-14. 725

14. Bret Bielema, Wisconsin 4 28-11 .718

15. Nick Saban, Alabama 14 110-50-1 .686

16. Dennis Erickson, Ariz. St. 21 131-60-1 .685

17. Mack Brown, Texas 21 195-95-1 .672

18. Les Miles, LSU 8 70-32 .666

19. Frank Beamer, Va. Tech 22 177-89-2. 664

20. Jeff Tedford, Cal 7 59-30 .663

21. Mike Teach, Texas Tech 9 76-39 .661

22. Butch Davis, UNC 8 63-33 .656

23. Brian Kelly, Cincinnati 5 41-22 .651

24. Rick Neuheisel, UCLA 9 70-38 .648

25. Rich Rodriguez, Michigan 8 63-35 .643

RECRUITING COUPS

This year’s top-10 incoming freshman classes as determined by premier recruiting sites Rivals.com and Scout.com:

Team Top-ranked player (rank)

1. Alabama Trent Richardson, RB (6)

2. Ohio State Dorian Bell, LB (20)

3. LSU Russell Shepard, QB (3)

4. Georgia Aaron Murray, QB (18)

5. Texas Garrett Gilbert, QB (14)

6. Southern Cal Matt Barkley, QB (2)

7. North Carolina Donte Moss, DE (27)

8. Tennessee Bryce Brown, RB (1)

9. UCLA Xavier Su’a-Filo, OT (59)

10. Michigan William Campbell, DT (55)