Morning Links: College Football

Tide’s Marcell Dareus Suspended for the First Two Games: Alabama will already be without Heisman Trophy winner RB Mark Ingram for their first couple of games, now suffer an even bigger loss with the news that Dareus is suspended. Dareus was suspended for receiving improper benefits this past offseason, and luckily his candor in the matter kept the suspension from being longer. Unfortunately though the suspension might just be long enough to ruin Alabama’s National Title hopes this year. In week 2 the Tide play Penn State at home, which now is made quite a bit more difficult without Dareus. Despite not really starting much, Dareus has become one of the best defensive tackles in the nation. He always seems to be in the backfield making the big play. If Alabama stays focused they should still be able to overcome Penn State without him but it won’t be easy.

Ole Miss Finally Gets Their Starting Quarterback: Former Oregon starting quarterback Jeremiah Masoli transfered to Mississippi this year after being kicked off the team for a couple of off the field incidents. Since Masoli had previously graduated from Ole Miss it seemed unlikely he would have to wait a year to play, since the NCAA wavies that restriction when applying for a graduate program at another university (as long as your original school doesn’t have that program). Earlier this week though, Masoli was declared ineligible to play, that decision was overturned on appeal yesterday. Now with Masoli in the fold, the Rebels offense got quite a bit better. He was one of the best dual threat quarterbacks these past two seasons, and provides Ole Miss with a great weapon. He will give SEC defenses quite a fit this year as he is great at making plays on the run. His presence also means that Sophomore Nate Stanley has another year of development time, which should be key for the future success of the program.