Postgame Blog: Marshfield Handles Dennis-Yarmouth

Adam McNamara (10) and Chris Lunn (35) were two of five Rams to score rushing touchdowns Friday.

By Joe Parello (@HerewegoJoe)

Here is your reminder that this blog is not a complete recap of the game, it is simply my wandering thoughts. If you'd like a full recap, plus my video highlights and some postgame comments from the player of the game, head to ESPN Boston High Schools.

Now, onward and upwards.

Your College Football Weekend Primer: The Premature End of Penn State's Sanctions

With postseason eligibility restored and a full complement of scholarships available, expect James Franklin to return Penn State to prominence. But is it too soon after one of the worst scandals in American sports history?

By Joe Parello (@HerewegoJoe)

Well, that didn't take long.

In the summer of 2012, following the Jerry Sandusky scandal and cover up, Penn State's football program was banned from postseason play, including the Big Ten Championship Game, until 2017, and was hit with crippling scholarship restrictions that would allow it to only carry 65 scholarship players (20 less than other programs) and offer 15 players scholarships each recruiting cycle (10 less than other programs), also until 2017.

Things seemed ugly, and it was estimated by many that the Penn State football team wouldn't be fully stocked with scholarship athletes until the mid-2020s.

Well, forget about all that, because just over two years later, all of it is out the window.

The NCAA, which appeared to "drop the hammer" on Penn State in July of 2012 for enabling and failing to report a child rapist, has decided that the Nittany Lions have done their penance, whatever that may be (perhaps not enabling another case of systematic child rape in the last 26 months?), and will be allowed to participate in the postseason THIS YEAR.

Furthermore, scholarships will be fully restored to 25 available offers per season and 85 total by the start of next season. Way to go NCAA, you effectively penalized the worst scandal in the history of college, if not all American sports by making Penn State skip the Gator and Buffalo Wild Wings Bowls, and by forcing a pair of coaching upgrades.

Long and Suite Preview: The Big Ten

Sophomore defensive end Joey Bosa may be the most complete member of Ohio State's potentially dominant front-7.

By Joe Parello (@HerewegoJoe) with a cameo from Jeremy Conlin (@jeremy_conlin)

The Big Ten may have actually played the biggest football game in its history in the last decade, though it seems like an eternity ago now.

But since then-No. 1 Ohio State topped then-No. 2 Michigan 42-39 in 2006's "Game of the Century" the conference has gone just 5-10 in BCS Bowl games, including two losses to SEC teams in the title game.

While The Big Ten fancies itself a football power, the results simply haven't been there. In fact, it would be fairer to compare The Big Ten to the Mountain West and now-defunct WAC, who went a combined 4-1 in BCS bowl games over the same span, than to the SEC, who won more national championships (7) than The Big Ten did BCS bowl games (5).

What the conference has done well, however, is brand itself and make money hand over fist. With The Big Ten Network thriving and delivering $44.5 million a year to senior conference members (schools in The Big Ten for six years or more. Sorry Rutgers and Maryland, wait your turn!) beginning in 2017, every football team will have the resources to contend.

But will they?

Closing the Book on the 2013 College Football Season

A remarkable season ended fittingly, as Florida State edged Auburn in a remarkable title game.

By Joe Parello  @HerewegoJoe

The last year of the BCS era has come and gone, and what a season it was.

We saw a redshirt freshman named Jameis capture America's eye, then potentially face rape charges, win the Heisman Trophy and, eventually, the national championship. We saw Urban Meyer eat pizza like a big ole saddie. We saw Johnny Manziel humbled, but not really. We saw smart schools like Vanderbilt and Duke join Stanford in the "we win the right way club."

We saw UCF become the final "BCS buster" to score a program defining win, and we saw Auburn qualify for the last BCS National Championship Game ever with a fluke Hail Mary pass, a field goal returned for a touchdown and three-point shootout win, all in the span of three weeks.

Yeah, it was a "what the hell just happened" kind of year. So join me, if you will, as I recap some of the biggest developments from 2013, and look ahead to 2014.

College Football Weekend Primer: Shame on the NCAA (Again) and the First Quarterly Report

NCAA President Mark Emmert says reducing Penn State's sanctions is "the right thing to do."

By Joe Parello  @HerewegoJoe

I think we can all now admit that last weekend featured one of the lamest college football slates in recent memory.

As editor Jeremy Conlin pointed out in our Weekend Football Recap, there was only one game between ranked teams (Though Arizona State shouldn't have been ranked), and I would add that the "marquee SEC matchup" of Florida and Tennessee was largely on affront on the game itself. Even if you clicked away from that turnover-fest to see the competitive Notre Dame-Michigan State game, you were treated to inept offense and vanilla play calling.

Meh.

But fear not college football fans, because exciting football returns this week with four different battles between ranked opponents. For more on those, the NCAA dropping the ball yet again, and our NCAA Football Quarterly Report, keep reading after the jump.

Your College Football Weekend Primer: Saban vs Johnny

Striking the Heisman pose and beating Alabama made Johnny Manziel a household name in 2012.

By Joe Parello  @HerewegoJoe

The college football season really gets going this week with, maybe, the most anticipated game of the year.

You just know Nick Saban, even with yet another crystal football in hand, has been sporting a throbbing hate boner for Johnny Manziel since he torched the Tide last year in Tuscaloosa. That means Bama will be even more focused than usual for A&M. Like, they're going to go from everyday sociopath focused, to American Psycho focused this week.

The 100 Best Coaching Jobs in Football: 26-50

TCU Coach Gary Patterson's job become a lot more appealing when the Horned Frogs joined the Big 12.

By Joe Parello

Today's group of jobs feature some of the more appealing NFL gigs, and we finally feature some college jobs where a coach can legitimately hope to win a national title. Still, nearly every one of these jobs could still be considered a "stepping stone" position for the most ambitious of coaches.

If you haven't read Part 1, Part 2 or Part 3, here is a refresher on our terms.

The "best" coaching jobs are ranked by:

1. General Prestige- The guy who coaches this team is a big deal.

2. Chances of Being Successful- In college this amounts to how well a coach can expect to recruit and level of competition. In the pros, it is determined by the competency of the ownership group and front office. Pro teams are generally lower in this category because a. the NFL is a league of parity (sorta) and b. you have to rely on other people to pick your players (most of the time). Not to mention, there is a draft.

3. Length of Leash- Can one bad season get you canned at this job? Or, is the administration/ownership group understanding of the team building process? A job where you can actually work through that process is obviously more desirable.

Two factors not used in coming up with these rankings were a team's current roster and compensation. Personnel and pay-wise, this is an "all things being equal" kind of thing. Think of it as the best places to build a team from scratch.

The rankings take college conference realignment into consideration, and include 111 possible teams from the NFL, ACC, Big East (though it will not be a BCS conference much longer), Big Ten, Big 12, Pac 12, SEC and Div. I independents.

So, without further ado, here is the next section of our rankings.

50. Georgia Tech: ACC

49. Illinois: Big Ten

48. Pittsburgh: ACC

47. Missouri: SEC

These four college jobs come with their perks and a realistic chance to compete for BCS bowls. Georgia Tech and Pittsburgh have each  been a legitimate national power at one point or another. The Yellow Jackets need to get back to dominating Georgia recruiting, and the Panthers have a ton of talent they need to keep in the 'Burgh.

Illinois and Missouri each have a decent amount of talent in their state, and administrations that will support national recruiting efforts. When both teams are winning they are recruiting neighboring states very well. For Illinois, that means snagging some Blue Chips out of Ohio, and for Missouri that means competing for top prospects in Texas. Being able to sell SEC football should help.

46. Indianapolis Colts: NFL

45. New Orleans Saints: NFL

44. Washington Redskins: NFL

43. Seattle Seahawks: NFL

42. Houston Texans: NFL

Four of these jobs have recently become more appealing, while the Redskins job has gone downhill since Dan Snyder came to town. Still, the Washington job comes with great prestige and a passionate fan base, not to mention a giant stadium. The Colts and Saints have developed a great fan following over the last decade plus and, along with the Texans, have some of the more underrated fan/stadium situations in football.

Seattle has, arguably, the best home field advantage in all of pro football. Also, with the Mariners not being a traditional baseball power and no NBA team in town (for now), the Seahawks play the majority of their season as the only pro act in town.

41. West Virginia: Big 12

40. Virginia Tech: ACC

39. Washington: Pac 12

38. Akransas: SEC

Virginia Tech edges West Virginia due to a better recruiting base, but a coach at either school will never be devoid of talent. Washington truly is a sleeping giant in the Pac 12. If the Huskies can keep the best players in Washington home, then pluck a few prospects out of California and Utah, there is no reason they shouldn't be able to compete for Pac 12 titles. Arkansas has historically recruited both the Bayou and Texas well, along with keeping in-state talent home.

37. Baltimore Ravens: NFL

36. Atlanta Falcons: NFL

Great fan bases and front offices make these two jobs very appealing, but a larger market gives Atlanta the edge.

35. Wisconsin: Big Ten

34. Michigan St.: Big Ten

The Badgers have had more recent success, but MSU is the Washington of the Big Ten. The Spartans have fertile recruiting grounds in their home state and nearby Ohio, along with an administration that is willing to spend as much as anybody in the conference (outside of Ohio St. and Michigan).

33. Clemson: ACC

32. Tennessee: SEC

31. South Carolina: SEC

These three southern schools all have their pros, and the state of South Carolina has powered both Clemson and South Carolina to recent success. Tennessee is still a very attractive job, but the in-state talent has fallen off a bit in the past decade, and there are plenty of other jobs in the SEC that offer a better chance to build a team.

Still, you could conceivably win a national tittle at any of these three schools.

30. Denver Broncos: NFL

The Broncos have one of the league's best front offices, a fan base that shows up, and a shiny new stadium. No wonder they were able to bring in Peyton Manning.

29. Cal: Pac 12

28. TCU: Big 12

27. UCLA: Pac 12

26. Penn St.: Big Ten

All four of these teams have great home states to recruit and can sell academics, as well as great campus life. Cal and UCLA, like Washington, Arizona and Arizona St. (sensing a pattern, Pac 12?) have underachieved, but there is no reason the Golden Bears and Bruins shouldn't be competing for at least conference titles.

The TCU job became one of the nation's best when the Horned Frogs made the jump to the Big 12. Major conference affiliation means TCU will get even more of those great prospects in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, along with the state as a whole. The Penn St. job has gone the other way of late, but the Nittany Lions, with fertile recruiting territory and money to spare, still represent one of the best chances to win big in the Big Ten. That is, once those scholarship limits run out.