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Top 16 Teams - Nov. 11
LSU moves into #1 Ranking as Ohio St. falls to Illinois

Team of the Week – Illinois
Frank Coyle - Head Scout - Draft Insiders

The college football top 25 rankings continue an amazing season with another major change with #1 rated Ohio St. falling from the unbeaten ranks. LSU moves into the #1 spot and is in good position for a BCS berth with a strong finish. The Ohio St. loss leaves only Kansas and Hawaii undefeated at this point of the season. The top 10 teams shuffled once again with several big upsets that affected the rankings especially Ohio St and Michigan which play their rivalry match next week. The former top ranked club, Ohio St got beat by a good Illinois club soundly and continues to be the most improved team in the nation and Big Ten. Oregon was idle but is in good position to challenge for the national title over the final weeks. Several clubs moved into our top 16 positions as a result of a few changes, Texas, Florida, Illinois and Cincinnati.

Maxwell ’07 Award Semifinalist List
Maxwell Football club announced the award semi-finalist list this week. QB Matt Ryan of Boston College heads a strong class of skilled position players, all enjoying impressive ’07 campaigns. Ryan is probably the nation's most improved player and the fastest rising pro prospect among senior performers.

The respective lists include a field of fifteen candidates for each of these awards as selected by the Maxwell Football Club Advisory Committee. The winner will be announced at the 71st Maxwell Award and presented during the Home Depot College Football Awards Show that will be broadcast on ESPN on Thursday, December 6, 2007. Three finalists for the award will be in attendance for the ESPN broadcast. The Maxwell Football Club will announce the winner of the 19th George Munger Award via a press release in December. The formal presentation of these awards will be made at the Maxwell Football Club’s Awards Dinner, to be held on Friday, March 7, 2008 at the Harrah’s Entertainment Complex in Atlantic City, New Jersey.

Arizona’s Antoine Cason Heads Jim Thorpe '07 Award 12 Semi-Finalists
The Jim Thorpe Association announced this week the 12 semi-finalists for its 2007 Jim Thorpe Award. The award is presented annually to the nation’s best college defensive back.
On Nov. 19, the list will be trimmed to three finalists who will be invited to the Home Depot ESPNU College Football Awards Show on Dec. 6. The winner will be announced on the show. The official presentation of the Jim Thorpe Award will be at a formal banquet in Oklahoma City on Feb. 12, 2008.
The 2007 award marks the 21st anniversary of the trophy, first presented in 1986 to Baylor’s Thomas Everett. Last year’s winner was University of Texas standout Aaron Ross, now playing for the New York Giants after being selected in the first round of the NFL Draft ‘07.

NFL Rookie Players of the Week – Vikings’ runner Adrian Peterson & Jets backer David Harris

Peterson projected as Top Rookie Impact Performer in May ’07
Excerpt from Draft Insiders Review May ’07 – “The Vikings were surprised that RB Adrian Peterson was available in the first round and quickly selected him. He is a blue chip back with the power to run inside and the speed to hit the home run and was a great addition to this attack. His injured shoulder left some concerns, though he should compete and win the feature back role in camp. He has the makeup to be a major impact performer here if he proves durable over the demanding NFL schedule.�

Top 16 Teams - Nov. 5
Ohio St. Holds on to #1 Ranking
Team of the Week - Oregon
Frank Coyle - Head Scout - Draft Insiders

The college football top 25 rankings continue to change with two undefeated clubs, Boston College and Arizona St tasting defeat for the first time vs conference rivals. The top 10 turned upside down once again for the 6th week in a row with several big upsets that affected the rankings. The top ranked club, Ohio St beat a good Wisconsin club soundly and continues to roll through the Big Ten. Boston College lost vs a fired up Florida St. club that stoned QB Matt Ryan. Oregon won a key conference game vs undefeated Arizona St who fell out of the top ten as a result. Oregon was lead by QB Dennis Dixon who threw 4 TD passes in the 35-23 bashing of the Sun Devils. Several clubs improved their position in the top 16 positions as a result with Oregon, Missouri, Michigan, Georgia and Connecticut all moving higher off nice victories.

NFL Rookie Players of the Week – Broncos’ runner SelvynYoung & Jets linebacker David Harris

The NFL ’07 season entered the second half of the campaign with a few surprisingly impressive performances by Broncos running back Selvyn Young and Jets linebacker David Harris. Both players started due to injuries to veterans and made a strong impression in their pro starting debut. Young rushed for 71 yards on 18 carries plus 6 receptions for 49 yards. He was a terrific rookie FA signing after failing to be selected over the 7 rounds last April. His efforts came up short vs the Packers on veteran QB Brett Favre’s overtime heroics. His fine performance was another productive game by a Bronco running back where numerous backs have been able to step in and product at a high level.

10/29/2007 Photo by Radi Nabulsi
College Player of Week by Draft Insiders.com - Georgia's Knowshon Moreno

Georgia Running Back Knowshon Moreno
Freshman sensation Knowshon Moreno ran for a career-high 188 yards and three scores as #20 Georgia upset top ten Florida 42-30 in a game filled with big plays and suspense. Georgia won a critical SEC contest vs arch rival Florida with the former New Jersey High school star the key contributor. For his terrific performance, Moreno earned the College Player of the Year by Draft Insiders.com. Moreno carried the ball 33 times, breaking tackles and outrunning defenders all over the field for 188 yards and 3 TDs. He is the best Georgia freshman back since Herschel Walker in the early ‘80s became one of the premier first year players in college history. Moreno has had two back to back 150 yard+ games vs Vanderbilt on 28 carries for 157 yards before the Florida game where he had 33 rushing attempts for 188 yards and 3 TDs. For the season, he has 152 carries for 807 yards and 6 TDs. He is a 5-11, 210 lb native of Belford, N.J., who lead Middletown South to 3 NJ State championships while setting the all time scoring record over his HS career. Against Florida, he averaged 5.7 yards per carry and also registered a pair of catches for 17 yards. Moreno's rushing total was the most for a Bulldog since Verron Haynes recorded 207 yards against Georgia Tech in 2001. It was Moreno's third career game going over 100 yards and his second in a row. Through eight games, he is 3rd in the SEC and is third best among the nation's freshmen with an average of 100.9 yards per game. He has already been named the SEC Freshman of the Week twice during the ‘07 season.