July 24, 2011
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By Marc Daniels
UCFAthletics.com
ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFAthletics.com) - It's the position that gets the most praise and the most criticism. It's where a split second decision can determine a win or a loss. It's where leaders guide teams to titles or where faith can be lost in one simple play.
This is the life of a quarterback. And when it comes to college football this season, no conference in the country is as deep and talented as Conference USA. Let me repeat that phrase and say there is no conference in the country as deep and talented as Conference USA.
Why repeat it? Because people who don't follow Conference USA would probably roll their sleeves up and be ready to argue that it's not possible for a non-BCS league to boast such a claim. Being the guy that I am, I came prepared for the battle with things critics typically don't bring to the table - facts.
Based on statistics from 2010, do you know which conference had more quarterbacks ranked in the top 40 when it came to passing yards per game? If you guessed the ACC, Big 10, Big 12, Big East, PAC-10 or SEC then you are wrong. The answer is Conference USA, which had 7 of the top 38 passers in yardage per game last season.
Conference USA boasted four of the top-18 quarterbacks in total passing yards in 2010 and three of the top-13 teams in team passing yards.
But those are numbers from last season. What about 2011? Glad you asked.
Which conference leads the nation in quarterbacks returning who threw for over 3,000 yards in their last season? The Big East? Zero. The Big 10? Zero. The ACC? One. The PAC-12? Two. The SEC? Two. The Big 12? Three. Conference USA? Five.
The five league signal callers who threw for over 3,000 yards in their last season are Tulsa's G.J. Kinne, SMU's Kyle Padron, Austin Davis of Southern Miss and East Carolina's Dominique Davis. The fifth quarterback is Houston's Case Keenum, who did throw for 5,020 yards in his last season played in 2009. Keenum returns for Houston after missing most 2010 with an injury.
Which conference leads the nation in returning quarterbacks who threw for at least 20 touchdowns last season? The ACC? One. The Big 10? One. The SEC? Two. The Big East? Two. The Big 12? Three. The PAC-12? Four. The answer, again, is Conference USA. The league returns six quarterbacks who had at least 20 touchdown passes last season. The actual number is seven if we count Keenum but his replacement last season, David Piland had 24 touchdown passes.
Which league leads the country in returning starting quarterbacks? If you guessed the ACC, Big 10, Big 12, Big East, Pac 10 or SEC then you are wrong, again. The answer is the MAC. The MAC returns 12 starters from last season. Second would be Conference USA, with nine returning starters, including Keenum from Houston.
Want more proof of how good the league is at quarterback? I haven't even mentioned Jeff Godfrey's name until now. Godfrey was among the national leaders in passing efficiency and ran for 10 touchdowns and almost 600 yards and led his team to a conference title and a Liberty Bowl win.
When it comes to experience and statistics at the quarterback position there is no league in the country that compares to Conference USA. With the return of Houston's Keenum and his run at the NCAA record books, the league has a Heisman candidate out of the gate. Add the arms and legs of Tulsa's Kinne, East Carolina's Davis, Austin Davis at Southern Miss, SMU's Kyle Padron, UAB's Bryan Ellis and Godfrey and feel confident you can last a long time when it comes to any debate about the best conference in the country when it comes to quarterbacks.
Knights notes and more: SEC Media Days featured Commissioner Mike Slive's speech about change to the current system of college athletics. Slive did not talk about a split of power conferences from non-power leagues. But don't think he hasn't thought about it. Slive focused on full-cost scholarships, updated recruiting guidelines to fit today's technology and increased academic requirements for eligibility. Slive is one of the most powerful men in college sports. If there is going to be change, he can make it happen. But money rules the game. Another item Slive did not talk about in Birmingham is his plans to meet with his television partners about reviewing their multi-billion dollar deal. The deal signed just a few years ago has become outdated with new packages for the Big Ten and PAC-12. How does this effect UCF? The more money super leagues make the bigger the challenge to compete fairly because of the revenue disparity...Final thought: I hung up on an automated operator last week. She asked me why I was calling and when I said "service repair" she answered in her nice, sweet, kind automated voice "Did you say nervous chair?" I then repeated my point of calling and she answered "I'm sorry, I didn't understand. Let's try again." My repair request is still needed, but for the moment, I felt better after the hang up.
Marc Daniels' From the Press Box runs several times per month on UCFAthletics.com. Listen to Marc during UCF football, men's basketball and baseball radio broadcasts on the UCF Sports Network. Each weekday, Marc hosts The Beat of Sports on ESPN Radio 1080 in Orlando.