ESPN Big 12 Blog

Posted by ESPN.com's Tim Griffin

I owe you readers an apology for my recent mea culpa, or at least a promise to better check my pop culture references the next time.

A recent mailbag tossed out a throwaway line about how I hoped to develop closeness with my readers that Tom Hanks shared with his volleyball during the movie "Castaway." Instead, it backfired when I confused Rod Tidwell's lovable agent in "Jerry Maguire" for ol' Forrest Gump, himself.

Needless to say, the blogosphere heated up rather quickly.

And when I got home, my wife was waiting for me with her own admonition.

"Hey, honey, remember that show with Tom Hanks where they used to have the Billy Joel song for the theme song?" she queried.

My grimace told her I knew exactly what she was talking about.

Call it an 'E-blogger,' I guess. I commit to watch every episode of "Bosom Buddies" if it ever comes back on. And maybe throw in a couple of viewings of "The Green Mile," "Splash," "Dragnet" and "Turner and Hooch" when they pop up. Even if it cuts into my Big 12 viewing time.

But now, onto the letters ...

Cody from Waco writes -- Do you think Colt McCoy can become a Heisman contender?

Tim Griffin -- People forget how good McCoy was as a freshman, when he tied the NCAA freshman record with 29 touchdown passes, a record eventually broken last season by Sam Bradford. McCoy still had a tendency to try and do too much last season. He had five games with multi-interceptions last season after having only one in 2006. McCoy's teammates all talk about the quiet resolve they seem in him and his willingness to let his teammates help him out. If he continues to do that, a big statistical year wouldn't be out of the realm of possibility.

And if Will Muschamp works his magic on the Longhorn defense and McCoy has the Longhorns challenging for the Big 12 title, it's not out of the question that he would be a Heisman contender. In fact, it wouldn't surprise me if any of the Big 12's "Big Five" starting quarterbacks -- McCoy, Bradford, Graham Harrell of Texas Tech, Todd Reesing of Kansas or Chase Daniel of Missouri -- could end up in New York City for the Heisman presentation with a little luck and some team and individual success this season.

John writes -- In a couple of years, Colorado will playing California in a home and home series which will be the athletic, granola-eating, hemp-wearing, hybrid-driving bowl. Many are looking forward to it. I went to USC for grad school and many would love the chance to beat Texas or play LSU in a non-conference matchup. Great concept for an article.

Tim Griffin -- Thanks for the compliment. I've never seen Buff and Golden Bear fans described in quite that way before -- although you might have left out a reference to Teva sandals as well. It will be a good matchup. That is if those guys hugging the trees outside of Berkeley decide to leave and let Cal finally build its new sports training facility.

Todd from Dallas writes -- I'm sure you've been to every stadium in the Big 12. In your opinion, who has the nicest one? Which has the best atmosphere? And also, who holds it down as the best tailgating university in the Big 12?

Tim Griffin -- My two favorite stadiums to be at for a really big game are Texas and Nebraska. I think that the Texas athletic department has done as good a job refurbishing their facility as any in college football with the addition of the huge scoreboard, the new luxury boxes and the new press box. I'll be interested to see traffic at the facility with almost 20,000 more fans this season, but that's something they'll work through, I'm sure.

And heading into a Nebraska game at Memorial Stadium is a very neat experience, especially if the weather is crisp and I've had a chance to buy a hot dog or a pork tenderloin from a street vendor outside the facility. And the fans are some of the best I've seen in college football, although I wasn't there during any of the Bill Callahan games last season. Their tradition of standing and cheering for opposing teams brought goose bumps to me the first couple of times I experienced it.

The best atmosphere for a game is Kyle Field at Texas A&M. The way the student body gets into a game there is unlike any I've seen in college football -- and I've watched games from coast to coast. It's also the loudest facility, particularly when the Aggies are playing well.

And I think the schools with the best tailgating are Iowa State and Kansas State. It seems that more people tailgate in the northern parts of the Big 12 because it's usually still so hot at South Division games in September and often in October. I remember watching some fans bring a huge couch to sit in the parking lot at Kansas State's Bill Snyder Family Stadium as they watched their satellite television and had a huge spread. It must have been very comfortable because when I got back after the game, the same people were in the same location -- albeit with a lot of empty beer cans scattered around them.

Chance from College Station writes -- A straight Big 12 vs. SEC showdown would be one for the ages and finally prove which conference is really better. Imagine Oklahoma vs. Florida, Texas vs. Georgia, Missouri vs. LSU, Texas A&M vs. Tennessee, Texas Tech vs. Auburn, Kansas vs. South Carolina, Oklahoma State vs. Alabama, Colorado vs. Arkansas, Nebraska vs. Kentucky, Kansas State vs. Mississippi State, Iowa State vs. Mississippi and Baylor vs. Vanderbilt. It would be great wouldn't it?

Tim Griffin -- Yes, it would. Is anybody in the programming department at ESPN listening?

I seriously think the Big 12's best teams would rank very favorably with the SEC, but the SEC's depth at the bottom of the conference is the major reason why the SEC is just a smidge better this season. But it would be great to see -- both for bragging rights and for entertainment purposes.

Jared from Ames, Iowa writes -- Hey Tim, love the blog. How many games do you see the Cyclones winning this season?

Tim Griffin -- Gene Chizik will be facing a difficult nonconference schedule with the road trips to Iowa and UNLV, particularly as he tries to resolve his quarterback issue and settle on a featured running back. I'm expecting 2-2 from the nonconference part of the schedule and 3-1 would be a major accomplishment considering who the Cyclones are playing.

The Cyclones will face a tough time in conference play, but I think they've got a puncher's shot of pulling an upset or two when they host Kansas and in road games against Baylor, Oklahoma State and Kansas State. So looking at the schedule, realistically, I think they likely will win at least the three games they did last season. Four would be a big accomplishment and anything more might get Chizik some Big 12 Coach of the Year votes.

Mike from Boulder writes -- Any thoughts on a possible sleeper from the Big 12? I would automatically count out OU, Mizzou, and Tech, since you can't be a sleeper if you're expected to do well. Somewhere in the middle are Texas and Kansas, although I don't think anyone will be shocked if either team finishes in the Top 15. I'll stick the Cyclones, Bears, and Cowboys at the bottom. That leaves A&M, K-State, Nebraska, and my CU Buffs as options, clearly in no particular order. Agree or disagree, and if someone were to shock some people, who would it, be?

Tim Griffin -- Mike, I do agree with you about the Buffaloes. If Cody Hawkins can show some major improvement and Darrell Scott is as good as George Hypolite thinks he is -- after comparing him in the same breath to Jim Brown and Adrian Peterson last week in Kansas City -- your team will be pretty salty.

I still think that Missouri is clearly the best team in the North Division, but the team that finishes second might be the one that plays the best defense and stays the healthiest. And it wouldn't surprise me if Colorado was in the mix for second place at the end of the season, maybe with a couple of upsets thrown in for good measure.

James writes -- I discovered your mail bag just recently and LOVE IT! I'm looking forward to your thoughts and comments on the upcoming season. Two questions: 1) As a KSU fan, how devastating do you think a lopsided loss to South Florida early in the season would be to KU? 2) What is your take on KSU this season with the influx of Juco players?

Tim Griffin -- James, the Jayhawks are going to be in the national spotlight for that game against South Florida. It will be a good thing if they win it. But it could be a very bad for them in terms of national credibility and prestige if they aren't competitive against Jim Leavitt, a coaching protégé of Snyder.

I think the schedule change and the tougher run of South Division opponents could make it difficult for the Jayhawks to win eight games. Their three new opponents from the South all are better than any team they faced last season. Kansas travels to Nebraska, where it hasn't won since the final days of the LBJ administration. And the Jayhawks also face Missouri on a neutral site. I still think Kansas will be a bowl team, but not nearly as good as last season.

And as far as your Wildcats, I think Ron Prince has his work cut out for him. If the junior-college players jell quickly, the Wildcats could challenge for a bowl bid and maybe pull off a couple of upsets. If not, it might be a long season for Prince and provide Kansas State athletic director Bob Krause with a tough decision after the season.

Thanks again everybody for the questions and keep them coming.