The Wiz of Odds

Barnhouse's Bottom 25: Florida International

Legendary sportswriter Wendell Barnhouse recently left the Fort Worth Star-Telegram and is now a correspondent for Big 12 Sports.com. With 30 years experience of observing the college scene, his expertise is unmatched. In the spirit of Steve Harvey's Bottom Ten, Wendell will provide us a capsule look at college football's less fortunate, counting down the Bottom 25 teams in Division I-A football.

No. 1 Florida International
Location: Miami.
Nickname: Golden Panthers.
Conference: Sun Belt.
Coach: Mario Cristobal, 1-11 in one season.
Division I-A history: Six seasons, 16-52.
Last bowl appearance: You're kidding, right? See Division I-A history.
Best record last five years: 5-6 in 2005.
Rank(ed) because: No better irony than Florida International winning its only game last season in the final game played in the Orange Bowl. The old Voodoo Palace is now a pile of rubble. That's a good description for FIU. In 2007, the Golden Panthers were involved in the embarrassing brawl with Miami. FIU is now 1-23 for the past two seasons.
Negative number: Before ending a 23-game losing streak with a 38-19 victory over North Texas in the season finale, FIU went 17 games without scoring more than 28 points. The Golden Panthers averaged 9.2 points per game during that stretch.
Possible victory: Dec. 6 in the season finale. Florida International hosts Western Kentucky, a I-A newbie which is ranked No. 119. If not battered into submission by the previous 11 games, these two teams could be deciding the coveted No. 120 ranking for the 2008 season.
Biggest blowout: Aug. 30, at Kansas. The Jayhawks' spread offense and quarterback Todd Reesing will be ready to slice and dice the FIU defense. Last year in Lawrence, KU rolled to a 55-3 victory. The locker room and the scoreboard should look familiar to the visitors.
Is there hope? In a few years, yes. Florida International moves into a new on-campus stadium this season. Cristobal likes how his team has improved in the weight room. There is lots of talent in South Florida so it figures some good players will wind up at FIU. The Golden Panthers also can look to fellow Sun Belt foe Florida Atlantic, a start-up program (2001) that went 8-5 last year and played in the New Orleans Bowl

Thanks to the Helmet Project.

Barnhouse's Bottom 25: Western Kentucky

Legendary sportswriter Wendell Barnhouse recently left the Fort Worth Star-Telegram and is now a correspondent for Big 12 Sports.com. With 30 years experience of observing the college scene, his expertise is unmatched. In the spirit of Steve Harvey's Bottom Ten, Wendell will provide us a capsule look at college football's less fortunate, counting down the Bottom 25 teams in Division I-A football.

No. 2 Western Kentucky
Location: Bowling Green, Ky.
Nickname: Hilltoppers.
Conference: Sun Belt.
Coach: Dave Elson, 36-22, sixth season.
Division I-A history: First season as I-A member;  506-328-31 in 89 seasons, .602.
Last bowl season: None.
Best record in last five years: 9-3 in 2004.
Rank(ed) because: The Hilltoppers are here mainly because of their transitional status. They're a full-fledged I-A school in 2008 and in 2009 will join the Sun Belt Conference. Last season's 7-5 record extended the team's streak of consecutive winning seasons to 12. The schedule, though, included six teams from the NAIA/Division I-A ranks. This season Western Kentucky plays money games at Indiana, Kentucky, Alabama and Virginia Tech. Welcome to the adult table, fellas.
Negative number: Western Kentucky's passing offense averaged only 161 yards per game with 13 TDs last season.
Possible victory: Murray State, Sept. 20. This is one of two I-AA opponents on the schedule (the other is at Eastern Kentucky). Murray State was 2-9 last season.
Biggest blowout: At Alabama, Sept. 13. The Crimson Tide will not be accommodating hosts when the Hilltoppers come to town.
Is there hope?: Yes. Western Kentucky has a history of winning at the I-AA level. In a few years, that success should translate at the next level. The key to this season is not becoming despondent over what figures to be four blow-out losses to teams from BCS conferences.

Thanks to the Helmet Project.

Barnhouse's Bottom 25: Idaho

Legendary sportswriter Wendell Barnhouse recently left the Fort Worth Star-Telegram and is now a correspondent for Big 12 Sports.com. With 30 years experience of observing the college scene, his expertise is unmatched. In the spirit of Steve Harvey's Bottom Ten, Wendell will provide us a capsule look at college football's less fortunate, counting down the Bottom 25 teams in Division I-A football.

No. 3 Idaho
Location: Moscow, Idaho.
Nickname: Vandals.
Conference: Western Athletic.
Coach: Robb Akey, 1-11, second season.
Division I-A history: 51-90 in 12 seasons, .362 winning percentage (overall, 424-526-26 in 110 seasons, .447 winning percentage).
Last bowl season: 1998.
Best record in last five years: 4-8 in 2006.
Rank(ed) because: Akey was the Vandals' fourth coach in five seasons when he made his debut in 2007. The best record the last five years came in 2006 under Dennis Erickson who bolted for Arizona State after one season in Moscow. Since joining the WAC in 2005, Idaho is 7-28 overall.
Negative number: In 12 seasons as a Division I-A team, Idaho has had three winning seasons. The last came in 1999.
Possible victory: Idaho State, Sept. 6. If the Vandals don't get too beat up in their season opener against Arizona, they should be able to knock off an in-state Division I-AA team. If Idaho doesn't win in Week Two ... look out below.
Biggest blowout: Boise State, Nov. 15. The Broncos will prove (again) that the Spud State can only produce one winning I-A team. Boise State won last season, 58-14. Playing in Moscow might shave a few points from that margin of victory.
Is there hope?: One of the reasons Idaho won only once (and that came against Division I-AA Cal Poly) is that Akey booted 17 players off the team before the season. The house cleaning sacrificed last season in the name of discipline and academics. And in 2008, the Vandals don't face a team that had a winning record last season until Game Seven at Fresno State.

Thanks to the Helmet Project.

Barnhouse's Bottom 25: Army

Legendary sportswriter Wendell Barnhouse recently left the Fort Worth Star-Telegram and is now a correspondent for Big 12 Sports.com. With 30 years experience of observing the college scene, his expertise is unmatched. In the spirit of Steve Harvey's Bottom Ten, Wendell will provide us a capsule look at college football's less fortunate, counting down the Bottom 25 teams in Division I-A football.

No. 4 Army
Location: West Point, N.Y.
Nickname: Black Knights/Cadets.
Conference: Independent.
Coach: Stan Brock, 3-9, second season.
Division I-A history: 633-440-51 in 118 seasons, .585 winning percentage.
Last bowl season: 1996.
Best record in last five years: 4-7 in 2005.
Rank(ed) because: This seems harsh and especially disrespectful of our service men and women (hey, at least Navy and Air Force avoided the Bottom 25). However, for a program that produced Mr. Inside and Mr. Outside, a program that has won 58% of its games, Army has fallen on hard times. Since a glorious 10-2 season in 1996, the Cadets are 27-99 over the last 11 seasons.
Negative number: 21 victories over the last 11 seasons against Division I-A teams. 
Possible victory: New Hampshire, Sept. 6. The Division I-AA foe won't be a pushover so if the Cadets can't bag this win they might not have another chance at avoiding a winless season.
Biggest blowout: At Rutgers, Nov. 22. This is the game before Army faces rival Navy. The Cadets will have a week off before facing the Midshipmen but it's hard to imagine they won't be peeking ahead at the schedule. Also, this late in the season morale could be low if the win column is lonely.
Is there hope?: Brock kept the lid tight during spring practice because Army was installing a new option-based offense. it would seem that a struggling program would be interested in fostering attention instead of avoiding it. Brock said he was banning fans and media from spring practices to better foster a sense of teamwork. Whatever. Navy and Air Force have been successful with option offenses. A strong running game was Army's calling card during the 10-2 season in 1996. With a softer schedule and a running game, the Cadets might start to reverse their losing ways.

Thanks to the Helmet Project.

Barnhouse's Bottom 25: Utah State

Legendary sportswriter Wendell Barnhouse recently left the Fort Worth Star-Telegram and is now a correspondent for Big 12 Sports.com. With 30 years experience of observing the college scene, his expertise is unmatched. In the spirit of Steve Harvey's Bottom Ten, Wendell will provide us a capsule look at college football's less fortunate, counting down the Bottom 25 teams in Division I-A football.

No. 5 Utah State
Location: Logan, Utah.
Nickname: Aggies.
Conference: Western Athletic.
Coach: Brent Guy, 6-29 in three seasons.
Division I-A history: 477-475-31 in 110 seasons, .501 winning percentage.
Last bowl season: 1997.
Best record in last five years: 3-8 in 2004, 2005.
Rank(ed) because: Hard to believe but this program actually is on the sunny side of .500 in its 110 seasons. Coaches like John Ralston, Bruce Snyder, Charlie Weatherbie and John L. Smith have called Logan home. But the Aggies have never been more than an afterthought on the national scene. Utah State has won only 25 games in the 21st century. As members of the Sun Belt (two seasons) and the WAC (three seasons), the Aggies have a 10-28 composite conference record.
Negative number: In Guy's three seasons, the Aggies' victory totals make a fine area code — 312. That's six victories against 29 losses. Even with that sorry record, Guy received a vote of confidence from new athletic director Scott Barnes. (However, a vote of confidence is never a good thing and coming from a new boss is even worse.)
Possible victory: Idaho, Sept. 20. The Aggies defeated the Vandals, on the road, in the 2007 season finale. Utah State has to hope for a repeat performance against a fellow Bottom 25 team.
Biggest blowout: At Oregon, Sept. 6: The Ducks will be looking for a big score to gain the attention of the poll voters.
Is there hope?: Guy finally has 85 scholarship players and he has played dozens of freshmen during his three seasons. The experience has to turn into victories. Winning the last two games (both on the road) of 2007 would seem to indicate the momentum is building. But if Utah State doesn't figure out a way to juice up its offense (115th total, 101st in scoring), competing in the high-scoring WAC will be difficult.

Thanks to the Helmet Project.

Barnhouse's Bottom 25: North Texas

Legendary sportswriter Wendell Barnhouse recently left the Fort Worth Star-Telegram and is now a correspondent for Big 12 Sports.com. With 30 years experience of observing the college scene, his expertise is unmatched. In the spirit of Steve Harvey's Bottom Ten, Wendell will provide us a capsule look at college football's less fortunate, counting down the Bottom 25 teams in Division I-A football.

No. 6 North Texas
Location: Denton, Texas.
Nickname: Mean Green.
Conference: Sun Belt.
Coach: Todd Dodge, 2-10, second season.
Division I-A history: 464-423-22 in 92 seasons, .522 winning percentage.
Last bowl season: 2004.
Best record in last five years: 9-4 in 2003.
Rank(ed) because: The Mean Green started the 21st century in a bad mood that translated into four consecutive Sun Belt Conference titles that produced four trips to the New Orleans Bowl. Considering where North Texas is now, that seems like decades ago. In his first season making the jump from high school head coach to college head coach, Todd Dodge found out that a 79-1 prep record doesn't translate to Division I-A. While "Dodge Ball" worked out fine on the offensive side, North Texas has huge strides to make defensively.
Negative number: North Texas gave up 45 or more points six times and twice the opponents' side of the scoreboard turned into That 70s Show — 79 by Oklahoma, 74 by Navy.
Possible victory: Florida International, Oct. 4. North Texas will be seeking revenge for last season's loss to the Golden Panthers that stopped FIU's 23-game losing streak. Considering that Florida International is a Bottom 25 team that has yet to show up in the countdown, the Mean Green has that going for 'em.
Biggest blowout: At Louisiana State, Sept. 13. North Texas also has a Check Cashing Game at Kansas State (the season opener) but this trip to Baton Rouge to face the defending national champions could get nasty. LSU opens Southeastern Conference play at Auburn after facing North Texas so this is will be a tune-up game for the Tigers.
Is there hope?: To fix a defense that finished 95th or worse in the four major categories (rushing, passing, total, scoring), Dodge went back in time and hired Gary DeLoach. He was North Texas' defensive coordinator from 2000-02. Under his guidance, the Mean Green were ninth in total defense in 2002. DeLoach spent the last five seasons coaching UCLA's secondary so he should be familiar with how to improve a pass defense that gave up nearly 257 yards a game.

Thanks to the Helmet Project.