Checking up on preseason bold predictions
Let's take a look back and offer a few grades:
1. Landry Jones' interception total will be in the single digits. Jones is on track for this one, throwing just four interceptions through seven games this season. He tossed a costly one on Saturday night, though the bobbled ball that Manti Te'o dove to intercept wasn't necessarily Jones' fault. Jones has never thrown fewer than 12 interceptions in a season, but he's doing it this year. Grade: A
2. Wes Lunt will throw for 4,000 yards. One ugly knee injury has slowed Lunt's progress, and this late in the season, you can probably rule out Lunt reaching 4,000 yards. OSU's offense as a whole is on track to do it, though. They've got 2,430 yards through seven games. J.W. Walsh is a freshman, too. Do I get points for this? I'm tempted to throw this one out. You won't see a grade from me on this one.
3. David Ash will start 13 games for Texas. This one looked like a lock two weeks ago, and Ash had shown the growth I thought he would. Now, though? We'll see this week. Texas says it hasn't decided on its starting quarterback, but Ash was benched last week against Kansas and Case McCoy led a game-winning drive. Grade: Incomplete
4. Trey Metoyer will lead Oklahoma in receiving. Ouuuuuuch. The hyped freshman is seventh on the team with 13 catches for 108 yards and a touchdown and hardly played last week against Notre Dame. Grade: F-
5. Texas Tech will play Baylor for a chance to play in a bowl game. Well, half of this might be true. Texas Tech has been one of the Big 12's surprise teams and already qualified for a bowl. Baylor, though, will need a late charge to do it, sitting at 3-4. Grade: D
6. West Virginia will lose to an unranked team. There's still plenty of football to play, but West Virginia has already made this particular prediction come true. Texas Tech was unranked when the Red Raiders rolled over WVU by 35 points in Lubbock this year. Another year, another head-scratching loss for WVU. Grade: A
7. TCU will reach the top five and then fall out of the top 20. I picked the Frogs to reach 7-0 this season before losing four of their final five games to fall to 8-4. That final record looks possible, but injuries and Casey Pachall's sudden exit left the Frogs trying to keep their heads above water before the schedule really even got super rocky. The Frogs are currently unranked, but peaked at No. 15 in the polls. Grade: C-
8. Kansas will win a conference game, and Baylor will qualify for a third consecutive bowl game. KU almost made this bad boy come true on Saturday, but some late-game heroics kept Texas from suffering the embarrassing loss. Still, I think it's coming. Baylor is 3-4 and needs to play much better ball to reach a bowl. I removed the Bears from my bowl projections this week for the first time all season. Grade: Incomplete
9. Iowa State's Jake Knott and A.J. Klein will rank first and second in the Big 12 in total tackles. Knott currently leads the Big 12 with 79 stops, but there are all kinds of rumors regarding his health. He wore a shoulder brace this week, but we'll see if he can stay healthy. Klein is tied for fourth in the league with 67 tackles, but if he had four more, he'd be No. 2. Grade: B+
10. Kansas State will finish in the Big 12's top two in rushing offense. I was definitely one of the K-State believers before the season, but even I didn't think they had a shot to be undefeated at this point in the year. Nonetheless, I believed in their ability to be balanced and replace three offensive linemen from last year's team. Now, they're averaging 230 yards a game on the ground, 32 more yards a game than the Big 12's No. 3 team. Grade: A
103.3 FM ESPN PODCASTS
Play Podcast Kirk Herbstreit joins Fitzsimmons & Durrett to discuss Bob Stoops' recent comments about the SEC and the pending college football playoff, what appears to be an unpredictable Big 12 in 2013, how the Aggies will handle expectations and more.
Play Podcast Texas A&M coach Kevin Sumlin talks about the improvements being made to Kyle Field, what those improvements will to for the program, the success of last year, Johnny Manziel's offseason and the expectations for the Aggies in 2013.
Play Podcast Scott Van Pelt and Ryen Russillo talk about Texas A&M's decision to expand its stadium and say although the Aggies had a fantastic year, the school must also be careful not to overextend its resources based on a single hot stretch.
Play Podcast Baylor head coach Art Briles joins Fitzsimmons & Durrett to discuss what kind of player the Cowboys are getting in Terrance Williams.
Play Podcast Arlington and Texas A&M product Luke Joeckel, the potential No. 1 overall pick in the NFL draft, joins Ian Fitzsimmons and Richard Durrett to discuss the draft, coaches and advice from his dad.
Play Podcast Florida Gulf Coast athletic director Ken Kavanagh joins Fitzsimmons & Durrett to discuss his school's Cinderella story and playing in the Sweet 16 at Cowboys Stadium.
Play Podcast Big 12 commissioner Bob Bowlsby joins Fizsimmons & Durrett to discuss Cowboys Stadium as a venue, the state of Big 12 basketball, the new 2014 college football format, why there's no hurry to have a Big 12 football championship and much more.
Play Podcast Jay Bilas joins Fitzsimmons and Durrett to discuss the remaining 16 teams in the NCAA tournament, the intrigue surrounding the Northwest Region and the excitement over FGCU, even though a similar story happens every year.




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