This is not going to be one my posts about how a playoff would be awesome (even though it would be).  Rather the good folks at Playoff Pac decided to take advantage of March Madness to put out their 2011 BCS tournament bracket.

Keep reading for the awesomeness of a bracket!

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More photos » Michael Albans - AP

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Sophomore QB Jordan Wynn runs the offense in Utah's Spring practice on Mar. 11, 2010.

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It's never too early for football.

The Utes held their first outdoor spring practice today at Rice-Eccles Stadium.  It was open to the public and I was able to attend.  Here are my impressions:

The biggest news thus far in spring is the move of Sophomore Safety Victor Spikes to Running Back.  Today he spent the entire practice splitting carries with Eddie Wide and Sausan Shakerin.  He looked impressive.  Spikes seems like a natural fit at RB with his good combination of size, speed and athleticism.  He made a few impressive catches receiving as well.  

A funny moment occurred after Spikes ran by the defensive lineman.  Defensive Tackle Sealver Siliaga yelled "hey trader!" to Spikes.  The team seemed like they were happy to be on the field and were having a good time.

Nai Fotu appeared to go down with a knee injury at practice.  No word from the Utes on what happened yet.  He is expected to be the starting MLB for the team who replaces all three linebackers.  If his injury was anything serious it would be a tough blow to the Utes.

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More photos » Denis Poroy - AP

Expect a big season from 2009 Poinsettia Bowl MVP, Jordan Wynn.

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Utah faces a much different situation this spring than the last one.

Last spring a quarterback battle between Corbin Louks, Terrance Cain and Jordan Wynn was the big story leading up to the season.  Who was to replace Sugar Bowl MVP quarterback Brian Johnson?  It ended up being Terrance Cain, then later Jordan Wynn.

Offense

This season is different.  Utah has a clear starting quarterback with some experience under his belt.  The Utes should have a much more productive spring.  Offensively Utah returns eight starters and three all-conference players.  Spring will be a time for the offense to continue to gel together.  

The WR position will be the biggest issue offensively.  Utah loses David Reed, Aiona Key, Elijah Wesson and John Peel to graduation.  The only returning starter is Jereme Brooks.  Shaky Smithson, Luke Matthews, DeVonte Christopher and other young players be battling for the starter positions at WR.  

John Cullen is expected to replace All American Zane Beadles on the offensive line, but he will not be at Utah in time for spring football.  Sam Brenner and Derek Tuimauga will be playing guard in spring until Cullen arrives.

Matt Asiata will return for the Utes but will not participate in spring ball due to injury.  Eddie Wide isn't expected to get much reps to keep him healthy so backups should get plenty of experience.

Defensive preview after the jump

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More photos » David Zalubowski - AP

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The Cowboys are looking to build upon their overtime thrilling win over Fresno State in the New Mexico Bowl this spring and in to the fall. It is quite amazing that Wyoming got to a bowl and won their game.  Their offense and defense were below average in the Mountain West which should have pointed to a losing season.  However, their turn around can be attributed to a great increase in turnover margin.  In 2008 the Pokes were minus 22 and plus eight in 2009.

Spring practice begins for Wyoming on March 6th with plenty of goals in mind.  This spring will be much different from last year since Dave Christensen will have had his offense for a full year, and the team will not be learning the offense like last year.  This time around the offense will be able to expand the playbook and to fine tune stuff with a much less learning curve.

However, the defense will move from a 3-4 to a 4-3 due to the loss of several key players especially defensive tackle John Fletcher.  The expected replacements on the line will be Gabe Knapton and Josh Biezuns who are making the move to play defensive end to anchor the new defensive scheme.  Knapton ranked second on the team in tackles and Biezuns was third on the team in sacks and tackles for loss.  The Pokes will use the 4-3 but will show multiple looks out of their base defense. Ghaali Muhammad and Ben Durbin will get the chance to start and contribute big time at linebackers due to the move of Knapton and Biezuns at end.

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We all get the dumb BYU jokes that they are old and married.  Haha, real funny, but at the NFL combine one would think that throughout the NFL combine those would not be brought up.  Well you are wrong.  Rich Eisen and Mike Mayock crack jokes about BYU tight end Dennis Pitta being married for the past nine years real mature guys, well at least Charles Davis makes a point to try to bring it back to actual football by saying he caught a lot of balls.  These quotes are right at the beginning of the video.

Other highlights are the man crush that the guys have on Pitta which in my terms can only be rivaled by JD and Turk from Scrubs in Guy Love.  If you prefer you could put their words behind some cheesy Boyz To Men love ballad or Barry White, or it really could be seen as a creep fest how these men drool over Pitta.

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Name: Darryl Washington

Hometown: Irving, TX

Height: 6'2"

Weight: 226lbs.

Position: Linebacker

Strengths: Still has room to grow since he did not get significant time until his Senior year when he become a starter.  Very athletic and is good enough to keep in the game on rushing and passing situations, which makes him more valuable then a situational player.  Stock rose after a stellar practice week at the Senior Bowl.

Weaknesses: His size is more of a safety then a linebacker and will be playing the outside linebacker position.  That will prevent him from being an early second round pick. He only had one  year as a full time player at TCU where he started two games in 2008 before becoming a full time starter in 2009.

NFL Draft Talk: Became a starter last year and helped TCU repeat as the top-ranked defense and led the team with 109 tackles. Doesn't seem instinctive but manages to get in on his share of plays with sheer aggression and sideline-to-sideline speed. If his production catches up to his potential, he can be special. - Frank Cooney, USA TODAY/NFL Draft Scout

Projected Round Drafted: Mid second to early third round.

Name: Jerry Hughes

Hometown: Sugar Land, TX

Height: 6'3"

Weight: 257 lbs.

Position: Defensive End

Strengths: Versatility, Hughes was a high school running back and was converted to defensive end.  He is able to play outside linebacker in a 3-4 or an end in a 4-3. Outside linebacker is probably where he will end up since he is on the smaller side to play defensive end.  Very good as a pass rusher as he had 28.5 sacks in his career, and lead the nation in 2008 with 15.  Stepped up with big games against top competition.

Weaknesses: Needs to learn more moves to become a better pass rusher at the NFL level.  He played against lesser competition while in the Mountain West.  Only played defense full time since arriving at TCU in 2005, he previously played running back in high school.

NFL Draft Talk: A defensive end at TCU, due to a lack of size he is expected to move to outside linebacker. The two-time consensus All-American will probably be used as a pass-rush specialist.  Must acquire a better repertoire of moves to be considered a constant pass-rush threat. - Frank Cooney, USA TODAY/NFL Draft Scout

Projected Round Drafted: Mid to late second round.