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We asked which coach you hated most in the Pac-12. You have spoken with much bile. Congrats.

It was sometimes hard to figure out exactly which coach you hated the most in your notes, as many of you listed several coaches. Some of you listed several coaches and provided many details on the sources of your hate.

In total, you named more than 20 different coaches. Even Oregon State's Mike Riley got a vote. So did legendary coach Bill Walsh (Huskies!).

The only sitting Pac-12 coaches to not get a vote? Utah's Kyle Whittingham and Colorado's Jon Embree. Guess you guys don't know them well enough to hate them. Yet.

The race for most hated was far closer than I thought it would be. (And this was hardly scientific because I only used votes that were specific and unambiguous. And I may have skipped over some of the 1,500-word essays).

Your most hated coach? Here's the nip and tuck final tally from the mailbag.

Chip Kelly: 29

Lane Kiffin: 30

Third place went to Rick Neuheisel with 19, though that's misleading because he was mentioned by many of you in some fashion, mostly in the line of, "I used to hate Neuheisel the most but now I hate..."

I was surprised that Washington's Steve Sarkisian got 11 votes, but I guess I shouldn't be because some Cal fans aren't happy with him (Tosh Lupoi, now at Washington after bolting Berkeley, got a bunch of votes but he didn't count because he's an assistant coach).

New Arizona State coach Todd Graham got five votes. New Arizona coach Rich Rodriguez got two. New Washington State coach Mike Leach got three. New UCLA coach Jim Mora got two.

For those who chose to look back, former USC coach Pete Carroll got 10 votes and plenty of mentions. Former Washington coach Tyrone Willingham got two. Former USC coach John McKay and former Washington coach Don James also got a handful of votes.

The most surprising vote -- other than Riley -- was one for former UCLA coach Bob Toledo.

Here are some comments. Obviously, some comments aren't appropriate for a family Pac-12 blog.

Steve from Seattle writes: By far the most hated coach is Chip Kelley. He certainly personifies the Oregon Fans with his snide comments to the media and better than everyone else attitude. Would love to see hard sanction get put on him and his institution!

Jack from Oakton, Va., writes: I cannot stand Chip Kelly. That smug grin he carries around as if he's the smartest guy in the world just makes me want to smack him.

Glenn from Renton, Wash., writes: Most Hated Coaches in the Pac-12: Chip Kelly. He's a smug jerk, but if I was an AD I would hire him in a New York minute.

Doug from Salt Lake City writes: The coach I hate the most is undoubtedly Oregon's Chip Kelly.Yes, he's a fantastic coach among the nation's elite. But he's a total jerk.The last straw for me came last season when, on live TV, he took time out from his postgame interview to scream at his own fans, "shut the hell up!"

Adam from San Francisco writes: Why is this even a question? Lane Kiffin.As for his new recent strides toward "maturity" - if I were a betting man, I'd bet a large portion of my heart, soul, and life savings that we all end up laughing at those statements by the time his tenure at Southern Cal is all said and done

Kent from Davis, Calif., writes: Coaches We Love to Hate: Lane Kiffin. The guy has less credibility and integrity than John Edwards. He's the only person in the world who could have made the late Al Davis look like upright and ethical. How this arrogant, imperious guy keeps getting plum jobs is beyond me but clearly you don't have to produce results on the field but simply keep wearing the "up and coming innovative offensive genius" tag to make it work.

Paul from San Francisco writes: No Pac-12 coach makes my blood boil more than Lane Kiffin. But it's not just his cavalier attitude and inexplicable career climb that drive me over the edge. It's his history against my Ducks. If you include his stint as USC's offensive coordinator from 2005 and 2006, Kiffin is 3-1 against Oregon, including last year's untimely win at Autzen that ended the longest home winning streak in the country. Needless to say, Nov. 3, 2012 has been circled on my calendar ever since

Kevin from San Francisco writes: Pete Carroll. I hate Pete Carroll. Everyone outside of USC hates Pete Carroll. He was classy in interviews, gave the other teams in the Pac 10 respect; in fact called the Pac 10 conference games the toughest part of his schedule. The reason why he is hated is because he was the leader of the most arrogant, abrasive group of fans and players to grace the Pac 10 in the last decade. Everybody is glad we no longer have to listen to Matt Leinart tell us that he doesn't think he's a celebrity, just everyone else in the world does. After every USC game we had to listen to the fans explain that "of course we knew we were going to win, just we thought it be over by the first quarter." And probably the part that irritates me and my Cal brethren the most is that despite a campus culture of a lot of drinking and little studying, students we met from USC always attempted to equate the academics to Cal. They aren't the worst school, but Cal is in another league.

Chris from Othello, Wash., writes: for us Oregon fans (And fans elsewhere in the conference), Rick Newheisel will always be a historical coach to hate. Growing up in the early 90's, I was consistently reminded about how that "New - weasel" in Seattle had consistently and infamously harmed our program throughout his various coaching positions. Even if he tried to turn a leaf while in UCLA, his history was never forgotten in Eugene.

Dee Dee from Portland writes: There is no possible way any coach in the Pac is hated more than Rick Neuheisel. The Weasel is universally abhorred by no fewer than THREE Pac12 fanbases. I don't even think UCLA fans like him that much any longer, and he's an alum. As a matter of fact, opinion on Slick Rick is the ONLY thing that Oregon and Washington fans have in common

Evan from Seattle writes: I must say, Steve Sarkisian is the lowest of low, slimiest of slime. Other than the obvious manner in which he talks, like a fake politician, he has a long list of shameless acts.

Dan from Spokane writes: I hate Steve Sarkisian more than any other Pac-12 coach and it's not just because of his ridiculous adherence to wearing a visor in the rainy northwest. His twitter account is insufferable. "Woof" every time a new recruit commits? Give me a break! He should tweet "whimper" every time the dawgs opponent hangs more than 50 points on them.Go Cougs!

Pete from Missoula, Mont., writes: When Utah first entered the Pac12, I instantly did not like Lane Kiffin. However, when I saw the class of not only him but the USC fans when my beloved Utes played them last year, my hatred shifted a bit. I decided that I need to stick with the hate that I already know. Hating Coach Sark from the Washington Poodles. You see Ted, it is easy to hate something you have hated before. I remember the years of hating Sark as the Team Down South, byWHO quarterback. I will always love to HATE byWHO, even if we do not play them anytime soon after this year. So Ted, this is the reason I hate Sark. It comes very naturally

Tana Vea from Sandy, Utah writes: Most hated coach in the Pac-12. Todd Graham hasn't coached a game yet but I already hate his guts. But I use to hate Chip Kelly, not as much anymore.

Henry from slymar, Calif., writes: Why limit your hating coaches column to head coaches? What about assistant coaches? I hate Tosh Lupoi mainly because he betrayed his alma mater for a boat.

Tim from Austin, Texas writes: Nobody outside of Tucson likes Richy Rod!

Sar from Tacoma, Wash., writes: regarding your request for all-time most hated coach. As a washington fan the answer is easy : 1992 Stanford Cardinal coach Bill Walsh. His well-timed (for him) block to the back of the Huskies football program is what I hold responsible for Don James' departure and a downward spiral to an eventual 0-12 season for the Huskies.

David from Tucson writes: In order to answer which coach I hate the most I have to exclude any and all ASU coaches because, in my humble opinion, that football program is the worst thing to happen to college sports since...ever. So, that being said I'd have to say that I hate Jim Mora the most, and for a purely trivial reason: his smile makes me want to punch babies.

David from Calgary writes: I hate Coach Mike Riley. Only because I was raised a Duck, and he's really like-able. So I hate that I can't hate him.

In case you haven't heard, some news on the Stanford front with an anonymous donor endowing Stanford's offensive coordinator position with Andrew Luck's name. Here's a snippet from the news story:

Through an anonymous donation, Stanford has ensured that former quarterback Andrew Luck's legacy will live on at the university by endowing Luck's name to the offensive coordinator position.

The position will now be formally known as the Andrew Luck Director of Offense.

"It is a huge tribute," Luck said in a statement issued by Stanford. "To have anything endowed in my name is a complete honor. I feel very fortunate to have come to Stanford, and I have always enjoyed representing the university. The offensive coordinators I've had here helped me not only in football, but also to grow so much as a person. To be a part of that leadership and position is a very proud legacy for me."

Pep Hamilton is Stanford's offensive coordinator. He replaced David Shaw, who was named coach following Jim Harbaugh's departure to the NFL.

"It is a tremendous honor to hold this position and to be associated with an outstanding young man like Andrew Luck, who means so much to Stanford football and the Stanford community," Hamilton said. "I will do everything in my power to proudly continue the tradition of creative and exciting offensive football at Stanford."

Only a handful of head coaching positions at private schools are endowed. For example, at Stanford, Shaw's position is endowed and is known as the Bradford M. Freeman Director of Football. Also, all 85 Stanford football scholarships are endowed.

You can read the rest of the news story here.

The Pac-12 is supposed to be a collegial league. Folks throw the ball a lot and mostly get along. There are strong rivalries, but no real villains.

Or not!

Heck, the new Pac-12 is loaded with villainy. At least it is when my bosses tell me to write a story about the top coaching villains in the Pac-12 as part of our "Love to hate!" series this week.

Villains? Iago, Darth Vader and Loki have nothing on Pac-12 coaches.

• New Arizona coach Rich Rodriguez ruined a great Michigan program. Well, it was him and a bad administration, bad players and a bad streak of duplicitous jealousy from former coach Lloyd Carr. But it's more fun to just blame Rich Rod. And Greg Robinson.
• New Arizona State coach Todd Graham left Pittsburgh high and dry after just one season to take over the Sun Devils. His rosy-cheeked players cried for days, though it's possible they were more upset about hearing the truth about the Easter Bunny -- he's doing 5-to-10 in New Jersey State Prison for vandalizing gardens.
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Kyle Terada/US PresswireOregon's Chip Kelly might be considered a villain in the Pac-12, because he can be abrasive with the media, and he wins a lot.
• California coach Jeff Tedford has failed to build on the incredible success of his predecessor, Tom Holmoe.
• Colorado coach Jon Embree made his team play 13 consecutive games last season with no bye. Wait ... that wasn't his fault? Oh. Well, I heard Embree yell at practice once.
• Oregon coach Chip Kelly fails to have a sunny disposition around reporters on a consistent basis. Dante reserved a special level of hell for coaches who aren't nice to the media.
• Oregon State coach Mike Riley... Er. Hmm. Well, one might smile, and smile, and be a villain, yes?
• Stanford coach David Shaw is always throwing his Stanford-ness in your face. You know the, "Oh I played receiver for Stanford," "Oh, I've got a B.A. from Stanford," "Oh, I'm the coach of Stanford," "Oh, I didn't get rejected by Stanford's graduate English program like you did," etc, etc.
• UCLA coach Jim Mora wasn't all rainbows and roses with Doug Gottlieb in a radio interview once.
• USC coach Lane Kiffin? Lane Kiffin! Don't listen to revisionist history. He's still Lane Freaking Kiffin!
• Utah coach Kyle Whittingham might act all soft-spoken and nice, but he sports a gotee and he's buffed up like a linebacker. He's clearly just waiting for everyone to turn away so he can snap your spine over his knee. And don't act like you haven't thought the same thing.
• Washington coach Steve Sarkisian? Two words: Coach thief.
• Washington State coach Mike Leach shot Yogi the Bear. Or was it Boo Boo?

So who is the top coaching villain in the Pac-12?

The easy answer is Kelly. He's gruff. He's closed practices. He flirted with the NFL. And, well, he wins too much.

But watch out for Kiffin. If USC again climbs back to the top of college football, that success might inspire Kiffin to again tweak his critics and adversaries. Not unlike Kelly, Kiffin has a pretty amusing, sarcastic sense of humor that isn't for everyone and sometimes doesn't translate well to print. Can he really keep that muzzled forever?

In fact, the Pac-12's biggest villain likely will be the winning coach when Kiffin and Kelly square off in the Coliseum on Nov. 3. The winner likely will be front-and-center in the national title race.

And no one likes a winner.

Pretty interesting and insightful column earlier this week by Kevin Scarbinsky of the Birmingham (Ala.) News about Stanford coach David Shaw saying that he doesn't want to be a voter again in the coaches' poll.

Writes Scarbinsky:

Bright as he is, Shaw took on an intellectual challenge last year that he would just as soon never tackle again. In his first year as a Division I head coach, he voted in the USA Today poll.

Shaw reflected on that memory Tuesday during a teleconference of Pac-12 football coaches.

"I don't want to be a voter again because I think it's impossible," he said.

Someone should write that down, run off copies and send one to every Division I conference commissioner and university president while they're still trying to figure out what the college football postseason will look like when the BCS contracts expire after the 2013 season.

He goes on to list a number of reasons why coaches shouldn't even have their own poll, and a lot of them make sense. I vote in ESPN's weekly poll, but that doesn't have any bearing on the BCS. Still, I find myself struggling on Saturday nights/Sunday mornings to read box scores, game stories, try to catch some highlights on the Web to validate why I have Michigan at No. 12 instead of No. 14.

Voting -- really, taking the time to do it right -- is hard. And most coaches simply don't have the time or energy to cast an unbiased vote that actually does have some bearing. There's a reason it's jokingly called the sports information directors' poll.

There are a lot of voters in the Associated Press poll who take it extremely seriously and they put in the homework. And there are some who don't. I've seen writers (no names) filling out their top 25 like a student scrambling to finish a multiple-choice test before time's up: "C, C, C, C, C, C,C" without even thinking. The debate comes at an interesting time in college football. Speaking with almost every coach in the Pac-12 last week at the spring meetings in Arizona, the consensus among them was that they wanted some input on how the teams in a playoff are selected. But they also want to take a lot of the human element out of it -- meaning do what you can to settle it on the field. Axing one poll would go a long way toward taking the human element out.

Stanford head coach David Shaw pulled the curtain back ever so slightly on his quarterback competition, revealing not what he's looking for, but what he's not looking for in Andrew Luck's successor.

"They know the quickest way for those guys to lose the competition is to try to be Andrew," Shaw said. "That will lose someone the competition."

This has been a different spring for Shaw, who took over following Jim Harbaugh's exodus to the NFL and had the best quarterback in nation already in place. Shaw had helped develop Luck as Harbaugh's offensive coordinator, and knew there wasn't much tweaking required. This year's crop presents a fun, albeit different, challenge for the former NFL quarterbacks coach.

"There were a couple of times where I had to grab them and get my hands on them," Shaw said. "Some of those young guys are like clay and you get a chance to mold them. It was fun. It was enjoyable.

"The only thing that would be more enjoyable [will be] when someone takes the job and we plant them in there and give them a chance to play. It was completely different. It was different working with a battle for the back-up quarterback job to the best quarterback in the nation as opposed to battling for the starting job."

Still, no matter whether it's Brett Nottingham or Josh Nunes who emerges as Stanford's starting quarterback, there are going to be expectations to maintain the success Stanford has enjoyed the past few years.

"I'm not going to lie, there is still an Andrew Luck hangover going on down here in Palo Alto," Shaw said. "But we have some athletic, smart, accurate quarterbacks that understand what we do. ... Their job is to be efficient. Their job is to hand the ball to Stepfan Taylor and Tyler Gaffney and Anthony Wilkerson. To find Levine Toilolo and Zach Ertz and give Ty Montgomery a chance to play.

"As we always talk about, the quarterback's job here is to deal the cards. Get it to the playmakers. Make sure the offense runs efficiently. And the guy that does that the best will be the guy that starts."

In other Stanford news:

Linebacker Shayne Skov is on schedule with his rehabilitation from a season-ending knee injury suffered in Week 3 last season against Arizona. Shaw said he expects Skov to be ready by the start of fall camp, but they will keep a close eye on him. Some are already predicting Skov as a first-round pick in next year's NFL draft.

"We'll be very smart with him, getting into the more physical practices, just to make sure," Shaw said. "Shayne doesn't have to prove to me that he can play the game of football; Shayne has to prove to me that he's healthy. We're not going to put him in those potentially damaging situations until we know he's 100 percent ready to go. So early in training camp we'll take care of him. We'll watch him the first couple of days of pads. If there are no setbacks, we'll release him for complete, full-go activity. I expect him to play up to the level of his ability."

For all the different competitions spilling out of Stanford this spring and into the fall -- quarterback, safety, offensive line -- head coach David Shaw made it clear that kicker is not one of them.

"Jordan is our kicker," Shaw said on Tuesday's Pac-12 conference call, referring to kicker Jordan Williamson.

Williamson, some might recall, had a rough outing at the Fiesta Bowl, missing three of four field-goal attempts in the 41-38 overtime loss to Oklahoma State. Most notable was a 35-yarder as time expired that would have given Stanford the victory.

Shaw was asked if there is a competition between Williamson and Eric Whitaker, which led to his decisive declaration for Williamson.

"Eric Whitaker is ready when called upon, just like a year ago when he was called upon to go at USC and was the special teams player of the week for the conference," Shaw said.

Williamson opened the season by converting his first seven field goals and 11 of his first 12. An injury forced him to miss three games -- USC, Oregon State and Oregon. Whitaker filled in and was 4 of 5 during that stretch.

"Jordan Williamson is an exceptional kicker who is athletic, who has a strong leg, who has been consistent up until the point he got hurt," Shaw said. "He came back and his timing was a little off and his technique was a little off."

Shaw said Williamson isn't lingering on it -- so neither is he.

"He and I have had one conversation about the Fiesta Bowl, and that was the day after," Shaw said. "All I told him was anybody that is any good at anything has always hit a low point. That was his low point. Scars heal, but they don't necessarily go away. He can use it as motivation or however he wants to use it. All I told him was when we go back to school, we go back to work. Your everyday activity, your everyday work ethic, how you carry yourself, your confidence, all of those things are things I'm going to observe. And when you're dedicated and work your tail off, and use the talents that you have, I said I'll never hesitate to put you back in that situation."

Speaking of "that situation" Shaw took the conference call as an opportunity to reiterate his decision to kick a field goal on the final drive in regulation. He was asked (full disclosure, by me) to reflect in general on his first year as a head coach -- whether he felt he was too aggressive or conservative in any situations or if he'd change anything moving forward.

"I don't know if you are referring to anything specific [for the record, I wasn't], if we're in a situation where we're driving the ball in a 2-minute drill against the team that leads the nation in interceptions, I don't give a doggone who the quarterback is. We're going to run the ball, get down to field-goal position and kick the field goal," Shaw said.

Sounds like coach and kicker have both moved on.

PHOENIX -- The first reaction was shock: Junior Seau dead at just 43, his death ruled a suicide. Quickly came grief: An all-time USC and NFL great, a good guy known for his accessibility and philanthropy away from the field who didn't want to live anymore.

Then shortly thereafter: Anger. Another football player dead before his time. Surely head injuries -- concussions -- were to blame. Surely the game is to blame. These three stages have been repeated too often of late, and their repetition threatens our love affair with a sport that obsesses our country like no other.

We can't make you feel any better about Seau. That's a still-resonating tragedy. We can only note it's premature to arrive at any overriding conclusions as to why he did the unthinkable.

But we might be able to make you feel a little bit better about football.

The takeaway from a timely Fiesta Bowl Summit panel Thursday, "Sports-Related Concussions: Facts, Fallacies and New Frontiers," was twofold: 1. The NCAA and NFL, after the media forced them to pay attention, have been working hard to get their arms around the issue; 2. It's not unreasonable to believe they can.

Of course, there always will be head injuries in contact sports, and repeated head trauma can lead to long-term health problems. This knowledge isn't new. Doctors were aware of boxers becoming punch drunk -- dementia pugilistica -- in the 1920s.

Understanding concussions and how best to prevent and then treat them, however, isn't easy. As Dr. Margot Putukian, one of four panelists at the Arizona Biltmore, said, concussions are "a moving target." Each one is different, and each person is different. They are not anything like a torn ACL.

Yet there has been recent research progress that is particularly meaningful for football. Said Dr. Michael McCrea, "The news is promising."

McCrea's research found that 28 percent of athletes suffering a concussion no longer show symptoms from their injury after 24 hours. Sixty percent are asymptomatic after a week to 10 days. So nearly 90 percent of athletes passed tests that showed their symptoms were gone inside of 10 days. But that's not the good news. Passing tests that show symptoms are gone doesn't mean the brain has fully healed -- achieved full clinical recovery.

The good news is this: Those numbers, it turns out, do indeed run roughly parallel to a full clinical recovery. Using a multi-dimensional approach -- symptoms tests as well as MRI -- for assessing the recovery process can, McCrea said, "take the guesswork out of concussion management."

These numbers should make it easier to convince athletes who are eager to get back on the field and coaches who want them there to be patient. Simply, coming back too early greatly increases the risk of another concussion, and a second concussion almost always requires a far longer recovery time. Waiting the full seven to 10 days -- and missing a game -- greatly reduces the risk of re-injury, McCrea said. Ergo, there are now specific numbers that show it's better for athlete and team not to rush things.

But the issues with concussions extend beyond understanding them, treating them and even preventing them. Every institution needs well-drilled standards and procedures for dealing with them: A concussion management plan. And coaches and training staff need to know them and know them well. Putukian asked a rhetorical question that all parents of athletes should be asking coaches (non-rhetorically): "What medical personnel do you have there, and what do you do in case of emergency?"

How many layers of procedure are involved here? Lots. Here's one you probably didn't think of: Academic accommodation. A player who suffered a concussion on Saturday might have issues taking a test the following Wednesday.

There was a consensus among the four doctors about how the NFL and NCAA can continue to improve their approach to concussions.

• Education: Players and coaches need to understand how serious head injuries are, and the potentially harmful long-term consequences for returning to play too soon. This could include, for example, coaches deciding to limit contact during practices.
• Equipment: There are no helmets that prevent concussions, and there won't ever be. That doesn't mean some helmets aren't better than others. Virginia Tech has devised a respected helmet ratings system, and the Riddell 360, Rawlings Quantum Plus and Riddell Revolution Speed all achieved five-star ratings.
• Rules changes: Obviously, an emphasis on stopping head-to-head collisions has been front-and-center. A lot of attention also is being paid to when concussions are most likely to happen in a football game -- on special teams, in the open field and for specific positions.
• Culture change: This might be one of the most difficult to enact -- see the bounty scandal involving the New Orleans Saints. Football is a physical game. That's why it's fun to play and to watch. But there needs to be a recognition that brutality for brutality's sake, a zeal for hurting opponents, can have horrific ramifications after the cartoonish strut and taunt end.

Coaches seem to be taking this issue seriously. Among those who attended the concussion summit, which was presided over by NCAA president Mark Emmert, were Stanford's David Shaw, Wisconsin's Brett Bielema and Texas Tech's Tommy Tuberville. When it was over, UTEP coach Mike Price stood up to say it was the best talk on the subject he'd heard.

This was a sad week for football. A few folks are seriously raising the question of whether college football should be banned. Seau's death made it less easy to scoff derisively at such talk.

Concussions are a serious problem in football. The first step toward solving a problem is recognizing it. The concussion panel this week suggested that football now might be taking a second and perhaps third step.

It’s been more than a week since the Indianapolis Colts made Andrew Luck the No. 1 overall pick in the draft. Since then, it’s been a whirlwind of more draft picks (David DeCastro also in the first, Coby Fleener and Jonathan Martinin the second round) and undrafted free agent signings.

One week seems like a long enough moratorium on projecting first-round draft picks. But ESPN.com’s Todd McShay couldn't wait that long. He’s released his way-too-early 2013 first round mock draft on Wednesday and Stanford linebacker Shayne Skov is projected to go in the first round to the New York Giants -- No. 31 overall.

Naturally, there is only so much credence we can give to this kind of projection this far in advance. After all, wasn’t Fleener supposed to go in the first round to the Giants?

Skov’s projection is an interesting one. Speaking with a couple of different Stanford coaches over the last couple of weeks, all indications are that Skov’s rehabilitation from a severe knee injury suffered in Week 3 against Arizona is progressing as planned.

Unplanned was his DUI arrest, which will continue to hang over the program until head coach David Shaw acts. For the record, Shaw said he would wait until after spring ball before announcing Skov’s punishment because he didn’t want to take away from the team.

But the bigger question is how Skov will perform once he returns to the field. Skov’s commitment to getting back healthy isn’t a question, nor is the mental aspect of the game. But when he goes to the combine and he starts getting poked and prodded and the injury questions come up, there is just no way to know how teams are going to react. Case-in-point: Washington running back Chris Polk, a pretty darn good back who was projected somewhere between the second and third rounds. But questions about his injured shoulders dropped him completely out of the draft.

And since we're projecting him as a first-round pick for kicks and giggles, would he slip by Jim Harbaugh and the San Francisco 49ers in the middle 20s (who didn't think Harbaugh would snatch up Fleener?)

If Skov had never been injured (and for the sake of argument, let’s assume he came back for another year) I would feel a lot more confident projecting him as a first round pick. But until we see how he moves on the field and just how sturdy that surgically-repaired knee really is, putting him in the first round seems a little too far out on a limb even for me.

1. West Virginia athletic director Oliver Luck, at the Big 12 spring meetings at the Arizona Biltmore this week, viewed the coming four-team playoff as an endorsement of his school’s decision to leave the Big East. Luck said West Virginia needed to be “across the fault line” dividing the haves and have-lesses before the BCS changed. One problem, Luck added: West Virginia now must pay Big 12 salaries. Dana Holgorsen’s three new defensive assistants got significant raises; the school’s other coaches won’t be far behind.

2. After hearing a BCS playoff update from Pac-12 commissioner Larry Scott at a meeting Tuesday morning at the Biltmore, Chip Kelly of Oregon said the league coaches don’t care about when and where the games will be played. They want to know the criteria for making the Final Four. “Just tell us how to get there,” he said. With Pac-12 champion Oregon finishing No. 5 last season behind two non-champions (Alabama and Stanford), it’s no surprise that Kelly endorsed conference winners only for the new playoff.

3. If you didn’t know that Stanford coach David Shaw expected an immediate contribution from offensive lineman Andrus Peat, the 6-foot-7, 300-pounder from Tempe, Ariz., you’ll figure out from the uniform number Peat will wear. “I asked him, ‘Do you know who wore No. 70?'” Shaw said. That would be Shaw’s Cardinal teammate, Bob Whitfield, who started as a true freshman, became an All-American as a junior in 1991 and played 15 seasons in the NFL. The most impressive thing about Peat? “He knew,” Shaw said.

Three consecutive Heisman Trophy runners-up, two consecutive BCS bowl games and final top-10 rankings: Hey, Stanford's special run of football success was fun to watch. It was neat seeing the most academically elite university playing BCS football whipping the big boys.

But we all know it can't possibly last, right? Jim Harbaugh built it and he's gone. Andrew Luck was a once-in-a-generation quarterback, and he's gone. And he took with him three other offensive players among the first 42 selections in the NFL draft over the weekend.

While the Cardinal certainly had more than 15 minutes of fame, it's time for this program to go back to its familiar brainiac territory -- Faulkner, computer chips and advanced algorithms. Leave big-time football the USCs, Alabamas and Ohio States of the nation.

Yes, such talk has worked its way across the grid, onto the Farm and into the Stanford locker room.

"We've talked about that," coach David Shaw said. "But we've also talked about that there can't be anything outside of our meeting rooms that motivates us. The motivation has to come from within. It's the only way that it is real. The only way that it is legitimate. But we've heard it. We know where we're ranked. But preseason rankings don't matter. Postseason rankings do."

In other words, the Cardinal believe reports of their demise are greatly exaggerated.

"They said the same thing when Toby [Gerhart] left and when Harbaugh left," outside linebacker Chase Thomas said. "We're pretty confident. We know what we bring to the table."

Of course, things change. No team can easily replace four elite NFL draft picks from its offense. That's why Stanford may be more about defense in the early going of 2012. Thomas leads a crew of six returning starters from a unit that ranked among the nation's top 30 in both scoring and total defense. The Cardinal's front seven in their 3-4 scheme appears to be particularly strong. Few teams in the nation will be as deep at linebacker, with Thomas and inside linebacker Shayne Skov both rating as potential All-Americans.

But what about that offense? The competition to replace Luck wasn't resolved this spring, with neither Josh Nunes nor Brett Nottingham demonstrating much consistency. And whoever wins the job won't have tackle Jonathan Martin protecting his blind side, or guard David DeCastro grinding defensive linemen into hamburger, or tight end Coby Fleener sprinting open down the middle with his 6-foot-6 self.

"We will continue our commitment to controlling the line of scrimmage," coordinator Pep Hamilton said. "We're going to run power. I don't see us changing much. If anything, if we have a few more opportunities to run power, we'll do that."

That means leaning on running back Stepfan Taylor, who has rushed for 2,770 yards and 27 TDs over the previous three seasons, and a deep stable of backs. That means leaning on a tight end combination -- Zach Ertz and Levine Toilolo -- that is as good as any in the nation, even without Fleener.

Receiver and offensive line? Those two spots remain questions, though the line will welcome back three starters.

Existing talent, however, doesn't tell the whole story of Stanford's potential for sustaining success. The incoming recruiting class is a significant chapter. Rivals ranked it fifth in the nation, Scout seventh and ESPN Recruiting 12th. No team in the nation came close to collecting as many elite offensive linemen: guard Joshua Garnett (Puyallup, Wash./Puyallup), Andrus Peat (Tempe, Ariz./Corona Del Sol) and offensive tackle Kyle Murphy (San Clemente, Calif./San Clemente).

Shaw isn't afraid to play the young guys, either. True freshmen will get opportunities on both sides of the ball, including the offensive line.

"There's a reason why we recruited a couple of big-timers at those positions," he said. "They will have an opportunity to play if not start at the left tackle position."

Instead of going away, Stanford may well have found a perfect formula that Harbaugh generated and Shaw has refined. Stanford has a lot to sell a certain type of athlete, one who is equal parts brains and brawn. Despite what many folks think about young athletes, there are plenty who want to challenge themselves intellectually before playing football on Sundays.

"This is a special place that attracts a certain kind of person," said Shaw, a former Stanford player himself. "The GPAs in this recruiting class are high, even positions where they are not always high. Our lowest receiver GPA is a 3.4. Not regular GPA, core GPA. These guys are good students and tough kids."

But how fast are they? A 3.4 is nice, but what about 4.4? The one thing that has held Stanford back is a lack of elite speed all over the field, particularly in the secondary and at receiver. Shaw said they "are getting closer" in terms of speed, but he also admitted that the Cardinal -- just like every other Pac-12 program -- have a bit of an Oregon problem. They are 23-1 versus everyone else over the past two seasons, outscoring those foes 1,024-405. Against the Ducks, Stanford is 0-2, outscored 105-61.

Does Stanford have an "Oregon problem?"

"That's a great question," Shaw said. "I'd like to have a survey on your website if anybody has some ideas. Chip [Kelly] does a phenomenal job."

While Shaw is said this in a good-humored way, it's clear that he and his coaches have spent plenty of time thinking about the Ducks. They recall beating them 51-42 in 2009, particularly how they handled the ebbs and flows of momentum. They know it's about preventing big plays and not wasting opportunities on offense. They know it's about tempo, a pitched battle of contrasting styles. Oregon wants to play fast and slash you. Stanford wants to slow things down and pound you.

At least one insider believes Stanford will sustain its recent run of success.

"Absolutely. Hopefully they do better than we did," Luck said. "I think there are a lot of great players here, starting at the top with the coaching staff. Great players, great recruiting classes. They will only continue to get better."

As for what Stanford will be in 2012, its first season of the post-Luck era, Shaw thinks his team will have the same tough-guy persona. But it'll be angrier.

"We're going to go right at people and hit them in the mouth," he said. "And it helps to feel like you're disrespected."

The inevitable is now official. Former Stanford quarterback Andrew Luck is an Indianapolis Colt.

Commissioner Roger Goodell had announced the 2012 NFL draft was open and Luck was on the phone with the Colts no more than 15 seconds later.

He got big hugs from head coach David Shaw and teammate Coby Fleener as he made his way to center stage.

"It was everything I thought it would be," Luck told ESPN's Suzy Kolber about the experience of being picked No. 1 overall. "I feel so blessed, so fortunate to be in this situation. I can't wait to start with the Colts."

And what can Indianapolis fans expect from Luck following a 2-14 season?

"Hope for the best," Luck said. "We'll come in and work hard. I know there are a lot of great guys in the locker room already. I feel so honored and so grateful to be able to represent this city now and be part of a team."

Luck becomes the fourth Stanford quarterback selected No. 1 overall, joining Bobby Garrett (1954), Jim Plunkett (1971) and John Elway (1983). Stanford is the only school that has produced four quarterbacks taken No. 1 overall.

Other Pac-12 players:

• Despite a trade, the Minnesota Vikings still got the man they were targeting all along, USC offensive tackle Matt Kalil. Cleveland traded up to the No. 3 spot where the Browns took Alabama running back Trent Richardson. The 6-foot-6, 306-pound Kalil went to the Vikings with the No. 4 pick. He becomes the 76th first round draft pick in USC history and the 22nd USC Trojan offensive lineman drafted in the first round. He's the highest drafted USC lineman since Tony Boselli (1995, second overall).
• Then, there was a long, somewhat surprising lull for the conference. Stanford guard David DeCastro, whom most mock drafts had going in the teens, slipped down to No. 24 where the Pittsburgh Steelers got some pretty good value with the No. 1 guard in the draft. DeCastro was the third offensive lineman taken after Kalil and Iowa offensive tackle Riley Reiff, who went one pick earlier at No. 23 to the Detroit Lions.
• Between the picks of Kalil and DeCastro, there were 13 defensive players taken to just six offensive. That run on defense benefited USC defensive end Nick Perry, who was drafted by the Green Bay Packers at No. 28. He'll join former Trojan Clay Matthews in the Packers' 3-4 scheme. Perry was considered a first/second-round tweener but lands in a pretty good spot.
• With just those four being taken, Fleener and Stanford offensive tackle Jonathan Martin are still on the board. Both were considered potential first round picks -- but Martin's stock had been sliding over the last few weeks while Fleener's star was on the rise. Once thought to be a pipe dream a couple of weeks ago, might we see the Luck-to-Fleener connection in Indianapolis after all?

Easy now, Stanford fan. Back away from the ledge of the Dumbarton. Take your mouse and slowly click away from Craig's List. No need to hawk those season tickets just yet.

So neither Josh Nunes nor Brett Nottingham looked like Andrew Luck in the spring game on Saturday. Relax, people. All of the reports out of Saturday's get together at Kezar Stadium project doom and gloom for Stanford at the quarterback position. But honestly, what were you expecting? It's a spring game -- a glorified scrimmage with funky rules and a gossamer thin depth chart. To quote Lloyd Dobler: "You must chill. You must chill."

Saturday just leaves us with what we already knew, that Stanford's quarterback conundrum won't be sorted out until deep into fall camp. Sure, there was always that off chance that maybe, just maybe, a white-helmeted-knight would emerge from spring ball with precision, arm strength and a Luckian understanding of the offense.

After Saturday that doesn't appear that will be the case.

"I don't care what the numbers say, (the quarterbacks) didn't play well enough for us to win," head coach David Shaw told reporters after the game.

Nunes and Nottingham, had average performances. Nunes connected on 11 of 29 passes for 167 yards and two touchdowns. Nottingham was 12-of-19 for 118 yards and an interception.

Both took a day to digest everything that had happened on Saturday; to watch some film, soak in what they did right and wrong and give themselves a fair evaluation. And both came out with the proper conclusion that no one is hitting the panic button.

"I felt like we did a lot of good things and it was a great experience," said Nunes, fresh off of a film session Sunday afternoon. "I think it allowed me to pinpoint a few things I need to work on heading into the off period. I feel like I'm really ready to attack the season."

And Nottingham?

"I'm not panicking," he said Sunday. "I worry about the things I didn't do correctly. But I'm not panicking. I put a lot of stuff on tape so now I can go back and clean up what I wasn't sharp on. Obviously when you're replacing a guy like Andrew Luck, there is going to be a lot of attention and press, but overall I thought there was a lot of good stuff that I can learn from."

Conference championships are never won in spring scrimmages -- and barring significant injuries to load-bearing players -- they are rarely lost. So don't read too much into the numbers (which by the way, don't account for the several drops).

"Our main goal is to be competitive in season and win a national championship," Nunes said. "I think we have all of the tools to do that. We weren't using all of our bullets on Saturday and I'm just taking it as a great learning experience. There are some things I need to work on and get better at, but I take a lot of good things away from it."

Nunes actually worked the entire time with the No. 1 offense. Is that worth reading into?

"Uh, I guess you have to ask coach Shaw," Nunes said. "But it was a good opportunity to get out there with the ones and keep creating come chemistry with my receivers."

Following the game on Saturday, Shaw said they wanted to get a "good look" at Nunes. Take that for what it's worth.

Naturally, because of who Nunes and Nottingham are trying to replace, the spotlight probably feels like a tanning bed set to extra crispy. All that -- the hype, the publicity -- is just window dressing to the million dollar question: Are they better quarterbacks now than when spring started?

"Without a doubt. Absolutely. No question," Nottingham said definitively. "Coming into spring ball, I think we were a little rusty. But there has been significant progress in knowledge of the playbook. Whenever there is a position change of this magnitude, you want to do whatever you can to narrow the gap. With Andrew leaving you want to minimize the drop off as much as you can. Yes, there is still a lot of work to be done. But I feel like there has been a lot of progress."

And at this stage in the game, that's all you can really ask for if you're a Stanford fan.

STANFORD, Calif. -- Stanford kicked off its second spring session after a three-week break this week, and here are some notes from the Pac-12 blog's visit on Thursday.

• And the first quarterback of the post-Andrew Luck Era is ... Yeah, right. It's likely going to be either junior Brett Nottingham or senior Josh Nunes, but coach David Shaw said the competition will extend into fall camp. "I want them to finish spring in competition mode. And I want them to start fall camp in competition mode," he said. "I don't want to name a starter the week of the first game. I'd like to do it before that so we can start to settle in." Shaw called the competition "Neck and neck."
• A recurring theme from the coaches -- Shaw and both coordinators -- is that members of the 2012 recruiting class are going to play in the fall. Several, in fact. Particularly in need areas such as the offensive line and secondary. Yes, those touted frosh O-linemen are going to see immediate action.
• As for the competition among existing players to replace left tackle Jonathan Martin and right guard David DeCastro, those spots are still up in the air. Brendon Austin and Cole Underwood are in the mix at LT, and Khalil Wilkes and Kevin Danser are in a battle for DeCastro's guard spot.
• Talented sophomore James Vaughters will get on the field, and don't be surprised if he ends up at inside linebacker. At least, that seems to be where defensive coordinator Derek Mason envisions him at present. Part of this appears to be his comfort with Kevin Anderson, who's been playing defensive end, and Alex Debniak backing up outside 'backers Trent Murphy and Chase Thomas.
• By the way, Mason loves his linebacker depth. He said as many as 10 could play in the Cardinal's 3-4 next year.
• Henry Anderson and Josh Mauro are locked in a tough competition to replace underrated defensive end Matt Masifilo.
• The Cardinal need to replace both starting safeties. The name that comes up the most is Ed Reynolds, who was out last season with a knee injury. Jordan Richards, Kyle Olugbode and Devon Carrington are in the mix also, but Mason doesn't hesitate to bring up incoming freshmen Drew Madhu and Zach Hoffpauir.
• It's pretty clear that the not-entirely-unreasonable questioning of whether Stanford can remain an elite team post-Andrew Luck is serving as motivation in the locker room. While the topic is hardly obsessed over, it's also fair to say everyone is aware of the widespread doubts heading into 2012.

So far, the quarterback competition at Stanford is going as head coach David Shaw has planned: Five men enter, two men leave.

The original five — Brett Nottingham, Josh Nunes, Robbie Picazo, Kevin Hogan and Evan Crower — all entered spring drills with, according to Shaw, an equal chance to be the guy replacing Andrew Luck.

As the spring session winds down in the next few weeks, Shaw said he believes that Nunes and Nottingham have separated themselves from the pack of five.

"We've got a couple of good, viable candidates," Shaw said. "It's not like no one has played well and we can't make a decision. Both (Nunes and Nottingham) have played well. But no one has separated themselves just yet. The positive is we have a couple of good options. Thankfully we have a little more time to see who separates themselves."

If you're a Stanford fan, this is a very good sign. The last thing you want to see at the end of spring practices is a quarterback competition going into the summer that still involves five quarterbacks. That's a recipe for chaos and an indication that there is still no direction. It doesn't appear this is the case.

No one, Shaw included, expected there would be a starting quarterback by the end of April. But the hope all along was that two -- possibly three -- players would emerge to take the competition to the next level when the Cardinal start camp in the summer in preparation for the 2012 season.

Nottingham, who was the backup to Luck last season, appeared in six games for the Cardinal, completing 5 of 8 passes for 78 yards, including a 39-yard touchdown strike Coby Fleener in the season opener against San Jose State. Picazo was the only other quarterback on the roster to throw in a game last season, completing 3 of 3 balls for 15 yards. Drew Terrell's lone pass -- the heralded one-handed catch by Luck -- wasn't enough to earn him a spot in the arms race.

Nunes was originally penciled in as Luck's backup last season until a turf-toe injury sidelined him for most of fall camp and a good part of the season. In an interview last week, Nunes said he was feeling 100 percent and the turf toe was no longer an issue.

While it's in vogue at some schools to use multiple quarterbacks, Shaw reiterated that the practice is not an option for him.

"The quarterback position is unique because if you were talking about another position, two or three guys can compete for another spot, and we can rotate at outside linebackers or running backs or receivers," Shaw said. " But we're not going to rotate quarterbacks, so you don't want to lose a single rep. You want to jump in there when you get an opportunity so it is competitive."

All of the above quarterbacks were outstanding high school players. Nottingham was a four-star recruit from the 2010 class and Nunes ranked 137th in the 2009 ESPNU 150 list -- coming in as the 12th-ranked quarterback in the nation.

Hogan and Crower were both three stars. Hogan was mostly sought after by the ACC and Big East while Crower was wooed by the Pac-10/12. Picazo joined the program as a walk on after setting a slew of records at Tesoro High in Las Flores, Calif.

"All of these guys are leaders in their own right," Shaw said. "It's hard to be the overall, true leader that you want to be when you're not a starting quarterback. So there is some jockeying there."

Folks like rankings, which is why a lot of you had opinions on both Athlon Sports and our rankings of Pac-12 coaches this week.

There are very few naysayers to the idea that Oregon's Chip Kelly is an obvious No. 1. In fact, I'm not even sure how you gainsay that.

But who's No. 2?

That's the question before your faithful Pac-12 bloggers.

Kevin Gemmell: Since you went first last week, and I used it as an opportunity to take a shot at you about Darron/De'Anthony Thomas Top 25 incident, I'll take the lead this week and suffer whatever ribbing comes from it.

To be honest, I was pretty torn when trying to figure out who I would put at No. 2 in the conference. I think you can easily make an argument for three or four different guys. But I've also seen what Kyle Whittingham has done at Utah from the very beginning when I used to cover the Mountain West Conference.

His résumé is stellar, and his credentials are without question. He has an undefeated season to his credit and two BCS bowl game victories (I believe the NCAA credits him and Urban Meyer both for the Fiesta Bowl win). If I'm wrong on that, he still has a BCS bowl victory at a then mid-major program.

He's 7-1 all-time in bowl games. That means he's a closer. The only bowl loss was in 2010 to Boise State -- the Broncos' second football game following the Nevada field goal debacle. There weren't many that thought Boise would lose that one.

What I think is the most impressive thing about Whittingham, though, is that he's proven to be his own man. He easily could have fallen into the trap that David Shaw now finds himself in at Stanford. Critics will constantly question Shaw about if he can do it outside of Jim Harbaugh's shadow and without Andrew Luck on the roster. Whittingham faced similar charges in the face of Meyer's departure.

In that time, he's gone 66-25 and stewarded the program into the Pac-12, where the Utes went 8-5 last season, including a come-from-behind win over Georgia Tech in the Sun Bowl. Sustained success means several things. He can recruit. He can reinvent himself and the team with each new generation of players. And he makes good hires.

We all know one bad recruiting class can set a program back several years. Bad hires can have an even longer impact. Whittingham is not afraid to take gambles -- and the latest one is naming former quarterback-turned quarterbacks coach Brian Johnson his offensive coordinator. At least some see it as a gamble. But Whittingham has given us no reason over his career to think it's not going to be a great hire.

The fact is, Whittingham wins year after year. Can't ask for much more out of your coach.

Ted Miller: I deserved the snark over the twin No. 12s. That was a moment of clumsy compensation for a boneheaded oversight on my part. Of course, you did steal my No. 2 coach, which I will write off to your savvy and your foreknowledge you got to go first this week.

And it gives me a chance to tout a guy who might shortly challenge for the top-spot on this list: Arizona's Rich Rodriguez. In fact, if we could make Rodriguez's ill-fated, three-year tenure at Michigan magically disappear, and then view Rodriguez as arriving in Tucson after a brilliant run at West Virginia, you would be able to make a case for him against even Kelly.

Before the disaster in Ann Arbor, Rodriguez was widely viewed as among the nation's best coaches. He'd been successful everywhere he went, and was considered one of the nation's truly great offensive minds -- not unlike Kelly. He went 60-26 at West Virginia and, after going 3-8 his first year, never won fewer than eight games. He also won a Sugar Bowl over Georgia, and his team won the Fiesta Bowl over Oklahoma after he bolted for Michigan. The Mountaineers won 33 games his final three seasons. According to this high-powered calculator, that's an average of 11 wins per season.

But what about Michigan? Well, as we've said before and surely will say again, his failure at Michigan was more about Michigan than Rich Rodriguez. It was a bad fit from the get-go in terms of his personality versus the "Michigan way"; Rodriguez wasn't able to hire his defensive coordinator, as he has done at Arizona with Jeff Casteel; he was shamefully betrayed and undermined by a Machiavellian Lloyd Carr; and it's not unreasonable to question the agendas of some of the media coverage he received.

Some Michigan fans take issue with that perspective on Rodriguez's Michigan tenure, much of which is detailed in John Bacon's book "Three and Out." But only because they love the Wolverines more than the truth, at least in this instance.

Rodriguez repeatedly has said he's not a quick-fix guy -- he, by the way, told the folks hiring him at Michigan exactly that -- and that it will take three years for his systems and recruiting to truly take hold. I doubt Wildcats fans are exciting about waiting that long, but the smart money is on Rodriguez finding a way to get it done in Tucson.

And, yeah, that means it's legitimate to dream about a first Rose Bowl within five years.

Wouldn't it be fun if it were against the Wolverines?