And, unlike the college hoops world, all of our coaches will get an invite.  Maybe not a high seed, but they will get in.
 
No shafting of mid-majors here....
 
Of course, every season a number of coaches will run off to other schools or the NFL, while others get run off by other schools or the NFL.  New faces in old places...and...new places for old faces...will always pique the interest of every fantasy college GM on the planet.
 
As usual, our review will look at the fantasy impact of the new hires...not project actual wins and losses.

 
1.   JUNE JONES  -  SMU:  Clearly the biggest fantasy impact hire of the off-season.  Jones left Hawaii for the big bucks and better facilities offered by the Dallas-area school.  The Mustangs were miserable in 2007, after going .500 in the 2006 season.  Jones should be able to quickly install his Run-And-Shoot offense with a Ponies' squad already capable of running a passing game.  Jones's biggest obstacle may be the loss of returning starting QB Justin Willis for spring practice.
 
2.   ART BRILES  -  Baylor:  The former Houston coach is a top offensive guru who should add some spark to a Bears offense that sits at the bottom of the Big XII every season.  Briles, who also is a legendary Texas HS school coach, has an established starter at QB with Blake Szymanski, which should make the transition a little smoother.  The Big XII schools love to move the football and Baylor now has a coach that will, at least, try to match conference foes going up and down the field.

3.   RICK NEUHEISEL  -  UCLA:  Noted college hoops Bracketologist who had potent offenses at Colorado and Washington, Neuheisel returns to the college ranks (and his alma-mater) to add some life to a Bruins offense that scored less than a high-school geek.   Joining his staff as offensive coordinator will be Norm Chow, arguably the greatest assistant coach the college game has ever known.  Vests now a phat clothing item in Westwood.
 
4.   RICH RODRIGUEZ  -  Michigan:  He may have left his former employer, West Virginia, on a sour note, but,  Rodriguez should make things exciting again in Ann Arbor.  Granted, he loses 2007 top prep QB prospect Ryan Mallett to a transfer, but the new Go Blue boss's penchant for high-scoring offense will have an impact almost immediately in the Big House...no matter who he puts in at the skill positions.
 
5.   DAVID CUTCLIFFE  -  Duke:   Some may think it is nuts to put anything "Duke Football" in high regard, but Cutcliffe knows how to tutor QBs...his former students include Peyton Manning and Erik Ainge while as a Tennessee assistant, and Eli Manning while as head coach at Ole Miss.  The Blue Devils have a good QB returning in Thaddeus Lewis, giving Cutcliffe something to build on in Durham.
 
6.   BILL STEWART  -  West Virginia:  This ranking is more for Stewart being able to preserve the Mountaineers potent attack, and not so much for improvement.  The former WVU assistant impressed everyone orchestrating the clobbering of Oklahoma in the Fiesta Bowl....considering the discord around Rich Rodriguez's leaving for Michigan.  Credit the Mountaineer powers-that-be for promoting Stewart.
 
7.   BOBBY PETRINO  -  Arkansas:  The craziness in Fayetteville the past few years will feel like a relief for Petrino, who spent a tough year in Atlanta as the NFL Falcons were getting dogged in so many ways.  Sure, the "Wildcat" offense, Darren McFadden, and Felix Jones may be gone, but, look for Petrino to get the Hawgs more airborne in 2008.  Things could really start happening in 2009 when Michigan transfer Ryan Mallett becomes eligible.
 
8.   KEN NIUMATALOLO  -  Navy:  Another ranking based on an assistant taking over a program, and not affecting it much, Niumatalolo (the first Pacific Islander head coach in NCAA history) will keep the successful Midshipmen option offense rolling at full speed.  And, he will make the spell-check industry much more profitable every time he and USNA QB Kaipo-Noa Kaheaku-Enhada are mentioned in articles.
 
9.   PAUL JOHNSON  -  Georgia Tech:  Some sports pundits are not thrilled with Johnson bringing his option offense to GT, but, it was statistically-friendly while he served at Navy.  Do not discount Johnson's ability to recruit the Peach State and the Southeast, for Johnson won FCS (formerly Division I-AA)National Championships while at Georgia Southern.
 
10.  LARRY FEDORA  -  Southern Mississippi:  "The Hat" comes to Hattiesburg from Oklahoma State, where he ran the "Feng Shui" offense...an almost perfect balance of passing and rushing.   He has an excellent RB in Damien Fletcher to build around.   Although USM unceremoniously ran off long-time head coach Jeff Bower, Fedora should add some spark to the Golden Eagles offense.
 

OTHER CHANGES OF NOTE:
 
STEVE FAIRCHILD  -  Colorado State:  The former CSU QB has his work cut out for him, as the Rams have been a bit underachieving the last few years under former coach Sonny Lubick.
 
JERRY KILL  -  Northern Illinois:  Successful Southern Illinois coach who moves upstate to take over after Joe Novak retired.
 
GREG McMACKIN  -  Hawaii:  June Jones will be a tough act to follow, and also loses QB Colt Brennan along with every major Warriors receiving target from 2007.
 
HOUSTON NUTT  -  Ole Miss:  Nutt probably wishes he could coax another year of eligibility from his former stars at Arkansas, because there is not much talent on hand in Oxford.
 
BO PELLINI  -  Nebraska:  A very good defensive coordinator who must clean up the remains of the failed Bill Callahan tenure.  You can be guaranteed that the Husker defense will be much improved under Pellini.
 
MIKE SHERMAN  -  Texas A&M:  A baffling hire...especially for a school with great support and some of the coolest traditions in college football.  Aggies potent ground game could be affected.
 
KEVIN SUMLIN  -  Houston:  Former Oklahoma offensive coordinator inherits a program that is used to big-play offense.  Too bad star Cougar RB Anthony Aldridge ran out of eligibility
 
PAUL WULFF  -  Washington State:  The former Eastern Washington head man must rebuild a struggling Wazzu program that has seen its offensive production decline in recent years.
 
 
Like a 15th seed knocking off a second seed....Daniel Freer can sometimes totally upset people.  If you are upset with your new coaches' review, or, feel like a Cinderella, contact Daniel at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it or on our Fantasy College Blitz Message Boards.

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