One of my favorite episodes of The Simpsons is when Lisa designs a doll to compete with her "talking Malibu Stacy" that says enlightening things like "don't ask me--I'm just a girl" and "let's make cookies for the boys". The bigshots at Malibu Stacy learn about "Lisa Lionheart" and decide to remake their doll-- an all-nighter that yields a new hat that creates a stampede which leaves "Lisa Lionheart" in the dust. Making one wonder- do cosmetic changes really change things deep down inside? And why couldn't the creator of Malibu Stacy, Stacy Lovell (voiced by Kathleen Turner) find true love (her string of broken marriages included Ken, cowboy Johnny, army Joe and Doctor Colossus).
August is all about optimism in college football. Everybody's unbeaten and with 35 bowl games, everyone thinks they have a legitimate shot at a bowl game (sadly, that's true-- 70 of 119, aka 59% of schools make the postseason). While most schools are either trumpeting a new regime (24 FBS schools in such a situation) or building off a successful season, Maryland gets to do both- with the added wrinkle of new uniforms.
Randy Edsall begins his first season at the helm having revamped the culture and structure of the program. Which has been interesting because under coach Ralph Friedgen the Terps definitely didn't have the reputation as a collection of renegade. Additional discipline in short hair, no names on the uniforms and no jewelry has given the squad a clean-cut look.
Offensively the Terps return 2011's ACC Rookie of the Year at quarterback; Danny O'Brien has a new coordinator in the form of ex-BYU and Louisiana Tech coach Gary Crowton. They've been working on the sophomore's form-- footwork, coming quicker out of center, release points, etc... Davin Meggett was part of last year's triple tailback attack and is expected to carry the bulk of the workload while DJ Adams continues to be the short yardage/goal line specialist. Will a wide receiver step up to fill the void of Torrey Smith? It seems as though every year somebody makes the leap from contributor to top target.
Defensively the team will be playing under its third system in four years. Todd Bradford looks to install an aggressive mindset and places All-ACC safety Kenny Tate closer to the line by moving the senior to outside linebacker; even as a defensive back in 2010 Tate lined up an awful lot in the box. How much will they miss the leadership of Alex Wujciak?
The team begins the 2011 campaign against Miami-- and that matchup has taken a different turn in the last week with the allegations of 72 players taking improper benefits over the last decade. What happens next? The term "death penalty" has been thrown out there-- and if that doesn't happen one would think the Hurricane program will be brought within an inch of its life. NCAA sanctions take a different feel at a private university (walk-ons can more easily afford in-state tuition at a public school). Virginia Tech's path to a Coastal Division title gets a little easier (especially with North Carolina also in the land of limbo). Moving forward-- there should be legislation attacking overzealous boosters. If you go after the money source, it'll be more likely to dry up.
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