One of my new favorite people in the world is ESPN college football analyst Mark May.

Seriously, I liked May before. He seems to know what he’s talking about half the time, which is at least 50 percent of the time more than Lee Corso, Lou Holtz or Chris Fowler.  He breaks down games very well, always seems to make valid pre-game points and went from a midweek analyst to someone who is respected when it comes to game commentary.

But now? He’s really outdone himself, endearing himself to the orange masses and generally just proving that he knows entirely too much about college football. I mean, what does this guy do? Research? Really? He does his job? Hmmm.

(By the way, Joel at Rocky Top Talk beat us to this story — surprise, surprise — but I figured every Volgger would get to this today at some point…)

On separate occasions the past two days, May has raved on-air about the Tennessee Vols offensive line — which allowed only four sacks all of last season and returned six of it’s top seven in the rotation. The only player UT didn’t return is Eric Young, who was injured late in the year last season and didn’t play the rest of the year.

The strength of the offensive line led May to make three predictions that have led many people outside of the Big Orange Nation to believe that the Tennessee athletic department may have pictures of May either in a man-thong or enjoying the Tampa nightlife with Jermaine Doster. Personally, I think it makes him smart, but let’s dissect May’s three bold statements:

• MAY STATEMENT No. 1: Jonathan Crompton is a quarterback to watch this year.

Well, duh. Of course, everybody who we try to tell that just sort of laughs in our face, but the guy wasn’t the No. 3 quarterback in the country coming out of high school three years ago for nothing. He can throw the football, make things happen with his feet and has two years to shine. Sure, we’re not certain whether he is going to make all of the correct mental decisions, but here’s the thing ….

He’s going to have plenty of time to make those decisions. That’s what May is saying, and that’s what I’m thinking. This offensive line is fantastic. Very few teams in the nation — heck, nobody that I know of — can trot out a group of guys that includes six bonafide NFL prospects. The Vols at least have five NFL prospects — including three stars, in my opinion. Jaques McClendon, Anthony Parker and Vladimir Richard (who doesn’t even start) are going to be awesome players. That’s not even including center Josh McNeil, who will be one of the two best centers in the SEC, solid senior Ramon Foster and junior Chris Scott, who was a five-star and who could develop into a top prospect.

If you want to differ because Erik Ainge got rid of the ball very quickly and say that’s the reason for the few sacks the OL allowed last year, that’s fine. But the front five on offense should be the team’s strength, and with a fullback thrown in there, I can’t wait to see what Crompton can do.

And we didn’t even mention that he’ll be throwing to Lucas Taylor, Josh Briscoe, Gerald Jones, Austin Rogers, Denarius Moore and Ahmad Paige.

• MAY STATEMENT No. 2: He just said this a while ago, that senior running back Arian Foster is a dark horse for the Heisman.

In the past, new offensive coordinator has been known to really, really showcase his best offensive players. Back when he was at Villanova, he had Philly running back Brian Westbrook, who is the only Division 1 player to ever have 1,000 rushing yards and 1,000 receiving yards in the same season, winning the Walter Payton Award, which goes to the best Divison I-AA player. He also coached NFL WR Brian Finneran, who had more than 1,000 receiving yards (and also won the Walter Payton Award). When he was at Richmond, Clawson had a 1,000-yard rusher, a 1,000-yard receiver and a 3,000-yard passer.

Also, there is the thought that the Vols are going to throw more to Foster this year, making him a more well-rounded pro prospect. He is a very good receiver, and while I think that Montario Hardesty and Lennon Creer will have too many yards in reserve for Foster to win the Heisman, he will be the undisputed leader of an offense that could be really, really good.

• MAY STATEMENT No. 3: Tennessee is a dark horse national champion.

That’s right, baby. And while it is very, very far-fetched, it assuredly is not out of the question. Starting out at UCLA could be a big momentum-builder, and the Bruins are losing players like the Ghost is shedding pounds over here. Florida is going to be a massive test, but it’s at home, and that Gator defense has been exposed for the holes it has several times, even if not by the Vols. Then, there’s Auburn at Auburn — yuck — but the past couple of years have told us that even if you don’t survive the SEC Gauntlet unscathed, it’s still very possible to make it to — and win — the BCS national championship game. There is then Georgia at Athens, which won’t be easy in the least. But Tennessee has owned the Dawgs recently, which gives me hope and — most importantly — gives the UT players the feeling that they definitely can beat the much-hyped (and perhaps over-hyped) Bulldogs. We all know how Bama plays in Neyland Stadium and what the Tide did to us last year, and Spurrier’s Gamecocks in Columbia will be nasty, as will Mississippi State in Neyland.

It’s a tough schedule, but it’s not an insurmountable schedule. If, if, IF UT can beat the Gators in Neyland Stadium early in the year, a one-loss run through the league is not out of the question, and if that’s the case, I think UT will have a spot in the SEC Championship game.

Am I predicting it? Not at all. I’m just saying it’s not out of the realm of possibility. And you don’t need blackmailing to see that.