John Roberts College Football

Week Fifteen: Friday

2005-12-09T11:34:00.000-05:00

The Heisman

Who deserves the Heisman Trophy this year?

1) Reggie Bush, USC- It's tough, because Bush did not have a great year returning kicks. Still, to average almost nine yards per carry with how many carries he had is phenomenal. He is exciting, and he deserves the Trophy.
2) Vince Young, Texas- I was ready to put Young second heading into last week, but he nearly vaulted to number one with his performance. He is exciting, and he throws and runs the ball very well. He deserves the Heisman, but this was an unfortunate year for him to earn it.
3) Matt Leinart, USC- Heading into last week, I was ready to vote for Leinart as the winner. However, after struggling early last week, and struggling in many of his big games this year early, it's too hard to vote for him. Almost any other year, Leinart would be winning his second Heisman. This year, it is just too tough.
4) Michael Robinson, Penn State- This guy has done everything that has been asked of him. He should have at least have been invited to New York for the presentation. He has developed into a great leader to go along with his great athletic ability.
5) DeAngelo Williams, Memphis- He's probably the best player from a non-BCS conference, and I normally try to find one of those or a defensive player to go into my Top Five. That's why Williams sneaks in. Plus, he is one of the best running backs in the country.

Week Fifteen: Wednesday

2005-12-07T09:00:00.000-05:00

As expected, yesterday's article set off a bit of a firestorm. We'll get to those e-mails in a minute. But first, let's take a closer look at all the different versions of a playoff and who would have been invited.

When in doubt, I turned to the BCS Standings for rankings and who should have been there.

Four Team
(based on BCS standings)

1. USC vs. 4. Ohio State
2. Texas vs. 3. Penn State

Who's ticked off: Oregon, Notre Dame.
Comments: Would Oregon fans be any happier here? Possibly, because, after all, Notre Dame got left out. Still, the same problem exists with Ohio State for the Ducks. For Notre Dame, all I can is don't lose to Michigan State and then you would be in.

Four Team
(only conference champs)

1. USC vs. 4. Notre Dame
2. Texas vs. 3. Penn State

Who's ticked off: Georgia
Comments: Georgia's turned to be ticked off. Notre Dame gets a bid because the Independents have to be able to get in somehow. Under this system, Notre Dame would get the fourth bid, and the Dawgs would be ticked. Ohio State might be a little frustrated too, since they were c0-champs of the Big Ten, but the official champ is Penn State. Sorry Buckeyes.

Eight Team
(based on BCS standings)

1. USC vs. 8. Miami
4. Ohio State vs. 5. Oregon
3. Penn State vs. 6. Notre Dame
2. Texas vs. 7. Georgia

Who's ticked off: Auburn, Virginia Tech, West Virginia.
Comments: Oregon fans should be ticked off for West Virginia in this case. After all, the Mountaineers have only one loss and they have beaten up on teams for the most part this season. Auburn lost at home to Georgia Tech, but so did Miami. Miami's other loss was to Florida State, while Auburn lost to LSU. LSU is ranked ahead of Florida State. Virginia Tech shouldn't have lost to Florida State or Miami. Lose only one of those, and then they could have been ticked.

Eight team
(choosing the six BCS conference winners, top non-BCS conference winner, one at-large)

1. USC vs. 8. Florida State
4. Ohio State vs. 5. Georgia
3. Penn State vs. 6. West Virginia
2. Texas vs. 7. TCU

Who's ticked off: Oregon, Notre Dame
Comments: This produces an interesting set of results. Oregon is still ticked off that Ohio State got in ahead of them. So is Notre Dame. No other non-BCS conference winner really has a claim to the spot that TCU claims this year, but if we look at Fresno State right after the USC loss, then the TCU-Fresno State argument would have been fierce.

Sixteen team
(based on BCS standings)

1. USC vs. 16. Texas Tech
8. Miami vs. 9. Auburn
5. Oregon vs. 12. LSU
4. Ohio State vs. 13. Alabama
6. Notre Dame vs. 11. West Virginia
3. Penn State vs. 14. TCU
7. Georgia vs. 10. Virginia Tech
2. Texas vs. 15. UCLA

Who's ticked off: Florida, Wisconsin, Louisville, Florida State
Comments: UCLA and Texas Tech switch spots in the rankings to avoid a first round regular season rematch. Florida is ticked because they are just behind UCLA in the BCS standings. Wisconsin is ticked because they are 9-3. Florida State is ticked because two teams from the ACC who they beat both got in ahead of them. Louisville is ticked because they are number sixteen in both human polls and not in the tournament.

Sixteen team
(six BCS conference champs, top two non-BCS conference champs, eight wildcards)

1. USC vs. 16. Boise State
8. Miami vs. 9. Auburn
5. Oregon vs. 12. LSU
4. Ohio State vs. 13. Alabama
6. Notre Dame vs. 11. West Virginia
3. Penn State vs. 14. TCU
7. Georgia vs. 10. Virginia Tech
2. Texas vs. 15. Florida State

Who's ticked off: Texas Tech, UCLA, Louisville, Tulsa
Comments: Texas Tech and UCLA both have only two losses and yet are getting taken behind two loss Alabama. Louisville is still ranked in the top sixteen in both major polls. Tulsa thinks that they should be in ahead of Boise State because they were Conference USA champs and Boise won the WAC. Obviously, Tulsa believes Conference USA is tougher than the WAC.

Sixteen team
(all eleven conference champs and five wildcards, divided into four regions and checking so that rematches don't happen until the Final Four, similar to the NCAA Basketball Tournament)

East
1. Penn State vs. 4. Tulsa
2. Notre Dame vs. 3. Florida State

South
1. Ohio State vs. 4. Boise State
2. Miami vs. 3. Auburn

Midwest
1. Texas vs. 4. Akron
2. Oregon vs. 3. West Virginia

West
1. USC vs. 4. Arkansas State
2. Georgia vs. 3 TCU

Who's ticked off: LSU, Virginia Tech
Comments: LSU and Virginia Tech went from fighting for the final number one seed to out of the tournament by their losses on Saturday. Amazing. However, Virginia Tech lost to Miami head-to-head, and LSU is ranked behind Miami. It is set up to try to keep teams close to their home region, however, due to the teams that aren't allowed to be in the same region (by rule, from the same state, from the same conference, or if they played each other during the regular season), sometimes teams get shipped out. (See Georgia.) Also, the number four seeds are ranked and so are the number one seeds so that the worst number four seed is playing the best number one seed. None of the other seeds are set up like that.

So which one do you think is most fair? Get your answers to me now. I'll post the results of the voting sometime in the near future.

Rant of the Week

I'm going to put a couple of rants out here this week. Here goes.

Maybe Notre Dame and Ohio St both deserve to be in the BCS. I don't think this is the big issue. I think the issue is the fact that both of these teams lost twice and Oregon only lost once. Since when should any 2 loss team be more deserving than a one loss team. All BCS conferences should be treated equal. If Ohio St. had went 10-1 and Oregon 9-2 with loses to USC and Cal and got in over Ohio St. The Big 10 would be in an uproar.
2nd - Most people don't agree with ND because of the way they have been treated this year. Last year Cal was dinged because they didn't win there last game impressively enough against a good Southem Miss team (also went to a bowl that year). ND barely beats Stanford in there last game and they still were praised as if they won 65-0. A Stanford team that got beat 27-3 a week earlier by Cal. Cal played the best game against USC last year and it didn't help them so why should ND playing a great game against USC benefit them so much more.
East coast people have to realize that nobody has beating USC in 3 years besides Cal. Nobody is going to beat them this year. Don't penalize the pac-10 because we haven't beating them yet.

--Eddie Hall
Eugene, Oregon

At the beginning of the season you could've predicted exactly what Notre Dame's record was going to be. They won all the games they were supposed to win and lost the ones they were supposed to lose. On the other hand, most people picked Oregon to finish around .500, yet they battled to a record of 10-1 with a brand new offense and without the most important player on their team for three games. As far as I know a win is a win and a loss is a loss and margin of victory isn't a factor anymore. I can't believe that Oregon would have had to go undefeated and beat the #1 team in the nation for the last 2 1/2 years just to get into a BCS bowl. Doesn't that seem flawed to you? It all boils down to money mostly and the prestige of Notre Dame....but then why play the games at all if record doesn't matter in the end. This Notre Dame team has been getting undeserved recognition all year. Just look at all the praise Weis has gotten when his team wasn't even as good a Willingham's first season (8-0).
It seems to me their is some sort of, dare I say, bias involved with Pac-10 teams. I don't know what else to call it. The majority of the time at the end of the season, if someone is getting the short end of the stick, it ends up being a team from the Pac-10. Just looking back at the last few years:
-This year Oregon gets left out of a deserved BCS at-large bid. -Last year California gets left out of a deserved BCS at-large bid. (And they barely lost to USC!) -A couple years ago, Oregon gets left out of the national championship being #2 in both polls, and then destroys Colorado.
-A couple years ago, Oregon State gets left out of the national championship, and then destroys an undeserving Notre Dame.
I just can't ignore the trend here. I'm not a statistics expert and some of this may have other angles to explore, but then there always seems to be a reason when it comes to the Pac-10, and very rarely do we ever hear a team such as Ohio State or Notre Dame getting snubbed. I mean is there any situation where a 9-2 Oregon team will EVER be ranked ahead of a 10-1 Ohio State team? Probably not.
As for a fix, you are probably right....their isn't one. I would like to see Notre Dame join the Pac-10 or any conference for that matter, but that is a side issue. I would be much more happy with the top 8 teams making the BCS bowls. Would Oregon be #8 then? I'm guessing no, but at least it would be something new to talk about for the underappreciated football teams on this side of the country.

--Ken Rust
Portland, Oregon

Those were the two best e-mails from Oregon fans concerning my articles yesterday. Very well thought out.

Now onto a topic that will interest even more people.

First of all I'm not a ranter or a whiner and I don't liketo argue but I really would like to point out a observation I came up withthis year.It seems that all the college football TV analysts are purposelytrying to look like a - - - - - - s for the sake of winning the ratings war.There is a world of difference between the Pro and College football commentators and/or analysts.Then when you look at the basketballcommentators and analysts its like night and day they present therethoughts and prognostications in a enjoyable and civil manner.

--Michael O'Leary

Well, thanks to everyone for their rants! They are a lot of fun to read!

VOTE NOW!

Everyone says that they want a playoff. So which system would you like to see if a playoff were implemented. There are seven options above. You choose which one you would prefer and send me (at JohnRoberts_CFN@yahoo.com) your preference in an e-mail. I will post the results at a later date!

Week Fifteen: Tuesday

2005-12-06T09:00:00.000-05:00

My Rankings

These are my final rankings of the regular season. I spent a large majority of last week breaking down teams and determining where they should be ranked. I'll get into more details of why some of the jumps took place in a moment. But first, here is my final 2005 Top 25. The previous rank is in parentheses.

1. USC 12-0 (1)
2. Texas 12-0 (2)
3. Penn State 10-1 (3)
4. Ohio State 9-2 (6)
5. Auburn 9-2 (9)
6. Oregon 10-1 (7)
7. Notre Dame 9-2 (8)
8. Georgia 10-2 (12)
9. LSU 10-2 (5)
10. Miami, FL 9-2 (10)
11. Virginia Tech 10-2 (4)
12. West Virginia 10-1 (13)
13. Alabama 9-2 (14)
14. Florida 8-3 (15)
15. Louisville 9-2 (17)
16. TCU 10-1 (16)
17. UCLA 9-2 (11)
18. Texas Tech 9-2 (18)
19. Florida State 8-4 (--)
20. Boston College 8-3 (21)
21. Wisconsin 9-3 (--)
22. Michigan 7-4 (19)
23. Georgia Tech 7-4 (20)
24. Northwestern 7-4 (--)
25. Clemson 7-4 (22)

Dropped Out: South Carolina 7-4 (23), Iowa 7-4 (24), Fresno State 8-3 (25)

Fresno State dropped out for losing to Louisiana Tech. South Carolina and Iowa dropped out (and Oklahoma got left off) because there are only 25 spots. Florida State had to be ranked (after all, they have beaten two Top Eleven teams and the number 20 team in my rankings), and Wisconsin has a better record than Michigan and beat them on the field. Northwestern (other than a loss to Arizona State) has played very well and won head-to-head against Iowa. Clemson beat South Carolina head-to-head. That was finally how the final two spots were filled, with Oklahoma being on the outside looking in, but just barely. It was very tough to rank just 25 teams when there are at least 28 deserving teams. I didn't even go into the other teams that were considered but quickly dropped from consideration.

The other big jump without playing came from Auburn, who jumped from nine to five. They passed LSU and Virginia Tech, both losers this weekend. Yes, LSU has a head-to-head win over Auburn, but Auburn beat Georgia and Georgia beat LSU. All those teams have the same number of losses, and Auburn played both teams in road games and only lost in overtime. They jumped Notre Dame because I decided that Auburn was a more impressive two loss team than the Irish. They jumped Oregon because...well, I'll get into the Oregon case in a minute.

Thoughts on the Rankings and the BCS Bowls

The situation is this. Notre Dame and Ohio State received automatic at large bids to the BCS this season. Ohio State was the highest ranking team not to get an automatic bid and was ranked in the Top Four. That means they get an automatic bid. Notre Dame was ranked in the Top Six of the BCS, which means (just like it does for all teams not in BCS conferences) that they get an automatic bid.

So who should Oregon be mad at? I understand why Oregon is upset. They feel like they got left out, and the fact that most people thought they were going to be left out before the upsets on Saturday made it possible for those two bids to become automatic does not sit well with them. Still, the team the Ducks should be mad at is Ohio State. They are the team that is ranked ahead of them in the rankings. Notre Dame got in because of the same rule that got Utah into the BCS a year ago, a rule that happens to make a lot of sense for all the non-BCS conference teams except for Notre Dame. But still, it is a rule that is at least somewhat fair. The rule that got Ohio State in was fair too, but if enough people had ranked Oregon ahead of Ohio State, then it wouldn't have been an issue. The villian last year was Texas for sneaking ahead of California in the rankings. The team that pulled "a Texas" this year is Ohio State, not Notre Dame.

Still, the Oregon fans are more mad at Notre Dame. I guess that they feel that losing to Michigan State is an unforgivable sin. They lost in overtime at home. Is that really that much worse than beating California in overtime? Well, maybe. Is that really that much worse than beating Fresno State at home by three...the same Fresno team that just lost to Nevada and Louisiana Tech? Well, maybe. Is that really that much worse than beating a 4-7 Washington State by three? I don't know. Is that really that much worse than only beating a 3-8 Arizona team by seven? Again, I don't know. Oregon beat zero ranked teams this year. Notre Dame beat one. I'll give Oregon that either Fresno State or California can be counted as a ranked team. Still, they have only beaten an equal number of ranked teams to Notre Dame. The complaint against Notre Dame has been their schedule, but where are the Ducks big wins. Houston, Fresno State, Arizona State, and California are all going to bowl games. Michigan, BYU, and Navy are all going to bowl games from Notre Dame's schedule. The schedules are virtually equal in my opinion, with a slight edge going to Oregon. Oregon lost by 32 at home to USC. Notre Dame lost by three at home to USC. Big edge to Notre Dame. Oregon has one loss, Notre Dame has two. Edge to Oregon. Notre Dame pounded opponents, Oregon slipped by them. Edge to Notre Dame. Oregon beat Stanford by 24. Notre Dame beat Stanford by 7. Big edge to Oregon. Oregon beat Washington by 24. Notre Dame beat them by 19. Call that a push. The two teams are fairly equal. That's why they are ranked right next to each other in my rankings. I give the ever so slight edge to Oregon, but the Ducks fans don't have too much of a case against the Irish, despite what they seem to think.

I saw a ranking on a USC site a couple of weeks ago featuring ranking the teams based on how bad their losses were and how many they had. In these rankings, Texas Tech was number ten, and Notre Dame was left off altogether. (It only went through number ten.) Apparently, this was claiming that Texas Tech had better losses than Notre Dame. Now, Texas Tech had lost to Oklahoma State and Texas. Notre Dame had lost to Michigan State and USC. Michigan State is better than Oklahoma State, but let's go ahead and call those two equal losses. So Notre Dame's three point loss to USC was worse than Texas Tech's 35 point loss to Texas? What does this mean? Shockingly, since Texas Tech was ranked ahead of Notre Dame, it should mean that this USC fan thinks that Texas is clearly superior to USC. If a 35 point loss is not as bad as a three point loss, I don't understand the philosophy. Plus, if the Big Twelve is so weak, as many Pac-10 observers like to point out, then the ranking is just as crazy. Of course, he did have USC ahead of Texas in his rankings. I realize that anyone can make a list of rankings and put them on an internet message board. Still, many people out there seem to be overly critical of the Irish and not so quick to judge on other teams.

Imagine that this was a playoff system. We all seem to think that things will get cleared up by having a playoff system. OK, so who is number four in a four team playoff this year? Ohio State? Auburn? Notre Dame? Georgia? Oregon? Suppose we have an eight team system with six BCS conference champs getting in automatically. Who gets left out? Oregon? Auburn? Notre Dame? Ohio State? Suppose it was an eight team system where just the top eight teams get in. Who gets left out? Notre Dame? Georgia? LSU? Virginia Tech? Miami? Auburn? Oregon? It is a messy situation, and unlike in basketball, where the 65th or 66th team in the tournament has little shot to win the whole tournament, the eighth or ninth best team would clearly have a shot to win the tourney in football. I am not necessarily an advocate of this system, but I am also not necessarily an advocate of a playoff.

In conclusion, it may appear today that I am defending the Irish. I am not. If the BCS were awarding bowl picks not based on which match-up will draw the most money, Ohio State, Auburn, or Oregon would be the two picks. But Notre Dame is a solid team that is getting beat on by people left and right. Do they deserve a BCS bid? Probably not. Could they beat Ohio State? Yes, they could. Could Oregon or Auburn beat Ohio State? Yes, they could. Is it fair? Probably not.

Week Fifteen: Monday

2005-12-05T08:06:00.000-05:00

WEEKEND IN REVIEW

Game of the Week
Akron 31, Northern Illinois 30

Akron won their first ever MAC title and advanced to their first ever bowl game in thrilling fashion. Trailing 24-10 entering the fourth quarter, the Zips zipped back into the game. Down 30-24 with time winding down, Luke Getsy was intercepted by Phil Brown in Northern Illinois territory. Needing just one first down, the Huskies turned to Garrett Wolfe (who gained 270 rushing yards on the day), who could not get the first down. Akron started from their own 19 with 1:41 left in the game before an 81 yard drive won the game for them in dramatic fashion.

Upset of the Week
Louisiana Tech 40, Fresno State 28

Two weeks ago, Fresno State was the toast of the college football world. They had lost by just eight to USC at USC and had put up one heck of a fight. They needed to only win their final two games to clinch the WAC title and they accepted a Liberty Bowl bid. Today, they have lost two in a row, didn't even win a share of the WAC title, and everyone is wondering what went wrong. Their shockingly lazy 40-28 loss to Louisiana Tech on Friday night in their final game shows yet again why these Bulldogs will drive you nuts. Each year they throw a scare into or beat a BCS team and everyone starts talking about how good they are. Yet, in the end, they can't come up with a WAC title, and they lose games they have no business losing. Don't worry Bulldogs. You've still got the Liberty Bowl.

Team of the Week
Akron Zips

Any time a team finds their way to a bowl game for the first time and to a conference title for the first time, they deserve mention as the Team of the Week. (Plus, who wants to decide between the Texas and USC blowouts?) The Zips played remarkably well this season and proved that they deserved their bowl bid. Their win over Northern Illinois was sensational. As MAC champs (and finally gettting that elusive bowl bid), the Zip fans finally can gloat a little bit.

Player of the Week
Reggie Bush, USC

Vince Young was amazing. So was Reggie Bush. Maybe they should be co-players of the week. Regardless, Bush had 24 carries, 260 yards and two touchdowns. Amazingly, 228 of those yards came in the first half against UCLA. Now the Bruins run defense was anything but stellar, but Bush still took control of the game early. If the Bruins has scored like Fresno State did, Bush would have accounted for another 500 yards.

Stat of the Week
490 rushing yards.

It's always amazing to see Navy at work when their offense is clicking. The problem for Army is that it always seems to be clicking. The amazing 490 rushing yards for the Midshipmen against their archrivals was the most dominating performance by anyone on Saturday. (Yes, I'm even including USC and Texas in their romps.) The physical toughness required to run the ball that effectively could only be displayed by a military academy. The fact that they show that dominance against another military academy is proof of just how physically superior Navy is right now (on the football field) to Army. One more point about the game- in the pregame teaser, why didn't John McCain put on a cap backwards? That would have made my Saturday.

Play of the Week
Willie Reid's 83 yard punt return.

In the ACC Championship Game, there was no offense in sight. The score was tied at three just after halftime. The Hokies were forced to punt to start off the third quarter, and Willie Reid fielded the punt at his own 17 yard line. He was near the sideline, he made a couple of people miss, and then got into a foot race where he outran punter Nic Schmitt. After the 83 yard run, the Seminoles had the lead, and the momentum was on their side. Virginia Tech spent much of the remainder of the game trying to regain some momentum, and by the time they started to, they trailed 27-3 on their way to a 27-22 stunner.

Turnover of the Week
Tim Jennings fifteen yard interception return.

LSU was down 27-7 early in the fourth quarter with JaMarcus Russell (their starting quarterback) out of the game. Matt Flynn was in the game, hoping to pull off a miraculous comeback. However, his second pass was intercepted by Tim Jennings and returned fifteen yards for a Georgia touchdown, putting the Dawgs up 34-7, well on their way to a 34-14 win and the SEC Championship. That was ten points in the span of 22 seconds for the Dawgs, and when a team does that, they normally win the football game.

Key First Half Moment of the Week
Hugh Charles fumble.

Admit it. There was a split second early in the Texas-Colorado game where you thought the Buffaloes really had a shot at the Longhorns. The Buffaloes opened the game with a very nice drive. They were moving the ball, and they looked like the looser team. On second and three from the Texas 36, Joel Klatt hit Hugh Charles with a pass for a one yard gain, but Charles fumbled the football, and it was recovered by Brian Robison. Texas promptly scored. For a few drives after that, Colorado continued to move the football. (Remember they outgained Texas in the first quarter, and then gained less than 75 yards total during the final three quarters.) The game was really over when on those early drives, Colorado could mount no touchdowns and put the pressure on the Longhorns. That first fumble was truly a killer.

Moment of the Week
Domenik Hixon's touchdown catch.

Domenik Hixon had sat out most of the second half with cramps. He was struggling to run and could not be relied on as the big play receiver that he was supposed to be. Still, he managed to be on the field with around 20 seconds left and the Zips trailing 30-24. He managed to get open in the end zone, and Luke Getsy managed to throw a strike. Hixon managed to get his hands underneath the ball and make the catch as he fell down. The 36 yard touchdown pass with ten seconds left in the game gave Akron the 31-30 lead. If this had been Dwayne Jarrett of USC or Jeff Samardzija of Notre Dame, this would be considered right up there with Michael Jordan making the game winning shot against the Jazz in the NBA Finals when he had the flu. It was truly a magical moment, and clinched a bowl bid for Akron.

Week Fourteen: Thursday

2005-12-02T09:00:00.000-05:00

Weekend Stars
Thoughts on who the stars of the weekend will be.

Game of the Week- Georgia vs. LSU- A lot of weeks, I pick the biggest game for this slot. This week, I picked the game that should be the most entertaining. This game features two of the better offenses in the SEC along with the always tough SEC defenses. This game could sneak LSU into the Rose Bowl if Texas or USC loses, but the Tigers would need a very impressive win over the Bulldogs and some help from the computers and pollsters. D.J. Shockley is one of the best quarterbacks in the SEC and JaMarcus Russell is not too far behind. This should be an extremely entertaining game. If USC-UCLA is close, be sure to watch it, but keep an eye on this one. When the USC-UCLA game ends, if both USC and Texas have won, don't worry too much about the ACC Championship Game. Focus on this one until it is over. If USC or Texas have lost, get two TV's set up so you can watch both LSU and Virginia Tech and decide for yourself if one of them belongs in the Rose Bowl instead of Penn State, USC, or Texas.

Upset Special- Louisville at Connecticut- Call me crazy, but the Cardinals are without Brian Brohm, they are going on the road, they have already accepted a bowl bid, and Connecticut is dying to prove on national television that they deserve a bowl game. Yet the line is 15.5 in favor of Louisville. The Cardinals have not played well on the road all season, and Brohm's injury is thrusting Hunter Cantwell in as the starting quarterback. Connecticut plays pretty well at home and is playing for a bowl bid. While Louisville might come up with the win, it seems to be a safe bet to at least pick UConn to cover the spread.

Team of the Week- Central Florida Golden Knights- They might be the Team of the Week even if they lose. They were 0-11 last year, and now they sit one win away from the Conference USA title. Their tilt with Tulsa is huge, as neither team was expected to be here. Still, a UCF win would put George O'Leary's name back into the pot for every major college coaching job. Steven Moffett deserves a ton of credit for playing so well at the quarterback spot for the Knights this year. They should be watched very closely this Saturday.

Players of the Week-
1) Reggie Bush, USC- Could he have another 500 total yards against another lousy defense? He might just do it.
2) Vince Young, Texas- Two bad weeks in a row? Doubtful. The Colorado defense is OK, but they couldn't slow him down the first time they met.
3) D.J. Shockley, Georgia- Shockley could put up the best numbers that anyone has yet this year on the LSU defense. Don't be surprised to see that happen.
4) Steve Slaton, West Virginia- USF is a good team and might be able to come up with the win, but Slaton is tossing his name into next year's Heisman hat.
5) Maurice Drew, UCLA- The Trojans struggle on special teams coverage. Drew can return kicks with the best of them. USC was gashed up the middle by Fresno during certain points of the game. Drew can do that too. Drew and Bush BOTH might have 400 total yards during this game. Now wouldn't that be something else?

Week Fourteen: Thursday

2005-12-01T09:00:00.000-05:00

Week Fourteen: Wednesday

2005-11-30T08:09:00.000-05:00

Overreaction Wednesday
Getting a little bit crazy and having some knee jerk reactions to last weekend's games.

One more upset. It's out there. Either Florida State, Colorado, or UCLA is bound to pull off an upset this weekend and throw the BCS into a bit of disarray. Of course, don't discount Georgia winning either, and that may be the upset this weekend, but it wouldn't be the mind-numbing, throw the BCS into chaos upset that one of those other three would be.

Akron, Akron, Akron. At 6-5, Akron looked like they had a shot to go to a bowl game. However, now they have to play in the MAC Championship Game. Because of all the different rules involved, Akron must win the MAC Championship Game to qualify for a bowl game. Is this yet another way that Akron finds a way to get left out of a bowl game? Last year, they were 6-5 and got skipped over by Marshall, a team that they had beaten. This could be even more brutal. Did Akron want to play for the MAC title, or did they just want to get to 6-5 and hope they got picked?

Louisville, which hasn't been able to have nearly as much success on the road this year as they have at home, will play a very poor game at Connecticut this Saturday night. With Brian Brohm out with an injury, the Cardinals may find themselves in a world of trouble against a UConn team that just beat USF last week and needs a win to become bowl eligible.

Speaking of the Big East, West Virginia will struggle as well at USF this Saturday. The Mountaineers have clinched the Big East, USF has been pointing to this game, and the Bulls are a very good home team. USF needs this game more, but WVU is the better team. This may be the most entertaining game of the weekend if both teams come ready to play.

Remember that some of these things are gross overreactions to the way teams played this weekend. These are not necessarily straight predictions, but rather thoughts that many may not consider that are very distinct possibilities.

News & Notes

David Cutcliffe has returned to Tennessee to be the Offensive Coordinator next season. This should help improve the Vols sagging offense.

Bowl Invites so far:

Arkansas State- New Orleans
Toledo- GMAC
BYU- Las Vegas
Colorado State- Poinsettia
Navy- Poinsettia
Arizona State- Insight
Rutgers- Insight
Boise State- MPC Computers
Utah- Emerald
Boise State- Liberty
TCU- Houston
Louisville- Gator

Quotables

Les Miles, LSU head coach- "We have eliminated any open weeks and we have gone and we have caught a pretty fast pace and we are performing well. When you look back you realize a different start and we could be talking about an undefeated LSU team. We have overcome the obstacles of hurricanes and the absence of bye weeks. This team has a great perspective and they haven't spent a lot of time looking back. They can see the task at hand, and they are focused on it to achieve it."

Mark Richt, Georgia head coach- "The field position will be very important in this game. It usually is when you have two strong defensive teams that are playing well. Offenses are making plays here and there but not enough to sustain and 80-yard drive. If you force an offense to go 70 or 80 yards, it's tough to do. The one thing that you can do to change that is have a great return."

Mack Brown, Texas head coach- "When I'm old and looking back and gumming my food, it (a conference championship) will be something that I will be really proud of. Right now I think it's something that is important to The University of Texas, this group of players, the program and our coaching staff. I have talked to the older coaches about what they have accomplished and they all say when you get through and you look back, you get involved with some of that and you are proud of that, but still even the relationships that you make with your fans and your boss and staff members and players are much more important than the number of games you have won or the significance of them. Getting to play for the conference championship is big, but very few people have played for a National Championship so obviously that would be really special."

Gary Barnett, Colorado head coach: "We are obviously the underdog if you guys didn’t know that. They have been a great team all year and it’s just a great challenge for our guys. Our goal was to get to this game and redeem ourselves from a year ago. I didn’t put on our board how many games we needed to win to get there, I just said let’s get there. I looked at all the records today (in the Big 12 North) and we are 5-3. The next closest team is 4-4, so we win the North and get a chance to play Texas. I think everyone in this program is excited about our opportunity."

Pete Carroll, USC head coach: "The situation that we all hope for, in our program we always want to give ourselves to get in that Rose Bowl. This year it takes on a little bit different significance, but yet the line has always been the same. The goal in this program has always been to own the Rose Bowl and to do that you have to win your conference. It just happens that every few years it changes what that game is about. It is really exciting and we are pumped up about it and we can't wait to get going."

Karl Dorrell, UCLA head coach: (on winning the Pac Ten Coach of the Year Award) "I am very appreciative of my peers, and the recognintion they have given me. Even more, it's an honor to be alongside the coach across town, who has accomplished some very special things with his program."
Rant of the Week

This week's rant comes from a disgruntled Michigan fan. It's easy to see why Michigan fans are disgruntled. After all, they went 7-4 and lost to their two biggest rivals, Notre Dame and Ohio State. Not a particularly happy season in Ann Arbor.

It's unquestioned that the Wolverines have the elite talentlevel to compete for the national championship year inand year out, but due to untimely, unexpected losses year in and year out they are never in the position todo so. I believe Coach Carr is a good coach, but farfrom an exceptional coach, and I am hardly the onlyone who shares this belief. I see the Wolverines as a very mentally soft team, or unprepared at times. Granted, we did pull together this year to be in position to win the Big Ten title for a third straight year, but in every loss except the Notre Dame one, we blew the games within the last minute. All the elite level universities have the same talent pretty much across the board, nowadays it just comes down to coaching and experience more than anything. Our coaching staff is also in the habit of playing not to lose, except in the most dire and uncommon of circumstances. Through the entire third quarter and almost all of the fourth, the Wolverines had the Buckeyes stopped/shut down. Up by nine, they stopped bringing pressure and sat back in zone that allowed Ohio State to move the ball and come back for the win. And for the coup de grace, our player was not even aware of the situation at the end of the game to get out of bounds. The coaches need to HAMMER that in in such a crucial situation. I guess I'm trying to see if you agree with all that rambling that the Wolverines have not been coached up mentally enough for these situations, and that the coaches do not playto win. It may be Carr, it may not; wouldn't he have the power to overturn any calls he disagrees with, even though it is the coordinators job to call the right plays? Obviously something is not working up in Ann Arbor. Any chance of Bo coming out of retirement?

--Justin Rocksand
Ann Arbor, Michigan

Bo coming out of retirement. HA! That was a pretty good one, Justin. Anyway, as I've said before I get complaints like this almost on a weekly basis about Tennessee, Ohio State, and Michigan. Seems like strange partners if you ask me. That being said, there appear to be some coaching problems at both Michigan and Tennessee. They play games not to lose and close to the vest. This can work most of the time with teams as talent rich as Michigan and Tennessee. Still, it means that in a season where things don't go your way, like they didn't in Knoxville this year when they lost three games in the final minute, you're going to find yourself with a losing record. Phil Fulmer is being forced to change or he will be gone. Lloyd Carr may have to have a season like that for the pressure to really mount on him. At Ohio State, Jim Tressel is a little bit safer because his national title was more recent, but he too plays games very close to the vest. That could one day get him into a load of trouble as well.

Week Fourteen: Tuesday

2005-11-29T08:05:00.000-05:00

Under Pressure
Mack Brown, Texas

Mack Brown has never won a conference title in all his years. A win in this year's Big Twelve Championship Game against Colorado (a team the Longhorns handled easily earlier in the year) means that he can finally get that off his back and also advance to the Rose Bowl to play for the national title. Sound familar? It is the same storyline that this game had back in 2001 when Florida's loss to Tennessee on that Saturday meant that Texas was in line to get to the Rose Bowl. Now, four years later, Texas looks to get rid of those ghosts. This Texas team certainly appears better than the one four years ago and Colorado certainly does not appear to be as good, or as hot. Still, Texas has to play the game. Mack Brown has to win it. If he can not get a conference title this year, then one may really never come.

Maurice Drew, UCLA

Maurice Drew is one of the most electric players in college football. He does it all, returning kicks, running the ball, catching passes. The problem is that he is going up against Reggie Bush this weekend. Bush is the most electric player in football. The pressure is one Drew to match Bush. If UCLA is going to stay in this game, Drew is going to have make a lot of big plays (and Drew Olson will have to carry his share of the load as well). Playing the counterpart to Reggie Bush is never easy, but Drew has a chance to prove that he is just as good of a player this weekend.

College Gameday Site
Los Angeles, California

The 11-0 Trojans and the 9-1 Bruins square off in LA this weekend, and the gang is going to be there. After all, where else would they be? This game will play a large role in determining who plays for the national title. If USC loses, then it opens the door for Penn State, Virginia Tech, or LSU to sneak in to the game, although the Trojans may still get in. It would also mean that UCLA would be in contention for a BCS spot, and get some people talking about them deserving to be in the Rose Bowl. If USC wins, then the Trojans would play for their third consecutive national title, their second consecutive BCS title, and they would extend their winning streak to 34 games. This is the most important game of the weekend, which is why the Gameday crew is heading out there.

Thoughts on the Rankings

The computers are coming around slowly, as now two computer rankings have USC number one and Texas number two. This is why USC is starting to extend their lead over Texas just a little in the equation.

Notre Dame moves up again in the computers despite their poor showing against Stanford. Why? Because margin of victory is not allowed to be taken into account. I want to hear one person defend why margin of victory should not be considered by the computers. I'm not saying that if Texas beats Team A by 60 and USC beats Team A by 42 that Texas deserves more credit. But up to around 20 points, there is a difference in how bad a team gets beat. Someone want to argue that Notre Dame's win over Stanford was more impressive than USC's beat down of the Cardinal? Well, the computers think it is, because USC beat Stanford at home, while Notre Dame won on the road.

West Virginia is quietly moving up the rankings. They have not played on Saturday in a month and won't play on TV this Saturday more than likely, so they seem to be getting ignored. Don't ignore them. They have moved up to number nine in the computers (margin of victory wouldn't hurt them) and they are up to number eleven in the standings. All of you hoping to get rid of the Big East's automatic BCS bid should be rooting for USF to upset the Mountaineers this weekend and knock them back down. WVU has struggled in bowl games in recent years, but this is one of the most dangerous teams running the football that we have seen in the last five years, which makes them a threat come bowl season.

My Rankings

The rankings are getting more static for a lot of reasons. Still, this Saturday I intend to sit down and really re-evaluate them. After all, four of my Top Five teams are playing this Saturday. I am hoping to really break down the action and see where these teams truly belong. In other words, there may be some changes next week when you see my rankings again. Previous rank is in parentheses.

1. USC 11-0 (1)
2. Texas 11-0 (2)
3. Penn State 10-1 (3)
4. Virginia Tech 10-1 (5)
5. LSU 10-1 (4)
6. Ohio State 9-2 (6)
7. Oregon 10-1 (7)
8. Notre Dame 9-2 (8)
9. Auburn 9-2 (9)
10. Miami, FL 9-2 (10)
11. UCLA 9-1 (11)
12. Georgia 9-2 (13)
13. West Virginia 9-1 (14)
14. Alabama 9-2 (15)
15. Florida 8-3 (16)
16. TCU 10-1 (17)
17. Louisville 8-2 (20)
18. Texas Tech 9-2 (21)
19. Michigan 7-4 (22)
20. Georgia Tech 7-4 (18)
21. Boston College 7-4 (23)
22. Clemson 7-4 (24)
23. South Carolina 7-4 (25)
24. Iowa 7-4 (--)
25. Fresno State 8-3 (12)

Dropped Out: Florida State 7-4 (19)
The Seminoles were crushed by Florida. The 'Noles were a questionable pick to begin with. Now, they have become a very questionable pick to be in any Top 25. If they beat Virginia Tech, they will return.

Biggest Drop by a team still in the rankings: 13- Fresno State. The loss to Nevada was shocking. Still, this team has accomplished a lot. They have lost to two teams ranked in the Top Ten by a combined eleven points and to a team that is 7-1 in conference play. Still, Fresno always seems to find one game where they are not prepared, and that game was Nevada this year. The Bulldogs are closer to being the team that nearly beat USC than the one that lost to Nevada.

Smallest Drop by a team that lost: 2- Georgia Tech. The Yellow Jackets played Georgia very close in a 14-7 game. Georgia Tech deserves a lot of credit for how they have played this year. Yes, they have four losses and some of them are unexplainable, but they also have seven wins, including wins over Top Ten Miami and Auburn, both on the road.

Biggest drop by a team that won: 1- LSU. The Tigers dropped one for slipping by Arkansas 19-17. The Tigers are one of the most talented teams in the country and they began this season ranked #2 in my rankings behind just USC. But of the Top Five teams, they have the worst loss (to 5-6 Tennessee at home), and they have been playing the most inconsistently (see last week's Arkansas game). LSU can earn a lot of points by beating Georgia soundly, but if they do not, LSU may not belong much higher.

Biggest jump by a team that was in my rankings last week: 3- Louisville, Texas Tech, Michigan. This was elementary, as Fresno State, Georgia Tech, and Florida State all lost to fall behind these teams and they moved up three spots. Louisville and Texas Tech may be slightly overrated. This weeks game against Connecticut sure looks dangerous now for Louisville without Brian Brohm.

Week Fourteen: Monday

2005-11-28T09:00:00.000-05:00

Weekend in Review

Game of the Week
Notre Dame 38, Stanford 31

The Irish found themselves in a dog fight with an OK Stanford team. This was not the way it was supposed to be. The Irish dominated everywhere but on the scoreboard. They amassed 636 total yards to the Cardinal's 336. But still, trailing 31-30 with just over a minute to play, the Irish needed to make some plays on offense. Darius Walker ran the ball in from six yards out with 55 seconds remaining and Victor Abiamiri sacked T.C. Ostrander with nine seconds left to seal the win for the Irish. It was a thrilling game and probably locks up a BCS spot for Notre Dame.

Upset of the Week
Nebraska 30, Colorado 3

Yes, SMU had no business beating UTEP, Kansas probably shouldn't have beatn Iowa State, and Nevada shouldn't have been able to take down Fresno State. But, Nebraska came out and totally dominated a Colorado team that hasn't looked too bad this season. It was in Boulder no less. The Cornhuskers have been struggling to put it all together this season, but they sure did on Friday afternoon against the Buffaloes. Colorado backed into the Big Twelve North title when Kansas upset Iowa State in overtime on Saturday afternoon. However, their confidence is severely shaken after their beatdown at the hands of the Cornhuskers. The outcome was never really in doubt, as Nebraska dominated from the beginning of the game.

Team of the Week
Florida Gators

Talk about a great performance. Any time you can beat your archrival 34-7, it has been a good day. The Gators took down Florida State on Saturday afternoon by that score. The stats make the game look closer than the score would indicate, but the Gators still dominated on the scoreboard. Florida State could get nothing going on offense and the Gators methodically took care of business. While Urban Meyer's first year was far from perfect, three wins over Tennessee, Georgia, and Florida State (the Gators three biggest rivals) makes this first season a success.

Player of the Week
Jeff Samardzija, Notre Dame

Samardzija had nine catches for 216 yards and two touchdowns against Stanford. He continues to put on an incredible show each and every week. He has become one of the top receivers in the country, which is amazing, given where he came from when the season began. He always seems to make big catches and big plays when his team needs him most. This past Saturday against Stanford was no exception.

Stat of the Week
451 rushing yards for West Virginia.

The Mountaineers have been running the ball well all season long. But against Pittsburgh, they took it to a whole new level. They ran the ball for 451 yards, while passing for just 41. Pat White, the quarterback, ran the ball 23 times for 220 yards, while Steve Slaton ran the ball 34 times for 179 yards. Both had two rushing touchdowns, and this accounted for their 45-13 win. The Mountaineers are going to a BCS bowl because they won this game and USF was upset by Connecticut on Saturday afternoon. Their solid rushing offense could be a threat to any team in a BCS game.

Play of the Week
Marques Hagans to Deyon Williams for the touchdown.

Deyon Williams barely came up with the catch in the back of the endzone with the score 25-10 with under thirty seconds to play against Miami. While the catch only made the score 25-17 and time was running out and the Cavaliers actually wound up losing, the catch was incredible. The play was reviewed and they gave him the touchdown. It was truly a great catch.

Turnover of the Week
Tim Jennings interception of Reggie Ball.

Georgia Tech was driving for the tying score against Georgia in the final minutes of the game. Down 14-7, the Yellow Jackets had moved all the way down to the Georgia 11 yard line, thanks in part to a pass interference penalty. Reggie Ball threw a pass on first and ten, and it was intercepted at the six yard line by Tim Jennings. Jennings returned the pass 28 yards to the 34, giving the Dawgs good field position. They went three and out, but the Jackets got the ball back at their own 39 with under ten seconds left, and that was not enough time to mount a serious drive. This interception sealed the game.
Key First Half Moment of the Week
Florida blocks a punt and returns it for a touchdown.

With around ten minutes left in the first half and the score 7-0 Florida, the Seminoles were trying a field goal. Marcus Thomas split the defensive line and blocked the kick. Reggie Lewis picked it up and ran 52 yards for a Gators touchdown. That made the score 14-0, and while the game was not out of reach, it became apparent that this was not Florida State's day. The momentum was all on the Gators side, and it was going to be tough for the Florida State offense (which is really struggling) to put two touchdowns on the board.

Moment of the Week
Nevada recovers the onside kick.

It was one of the most exciting plays of the whole weekend. Nevada had jumped out to a 38-27 lead with a minute and a half remaining. The Bulldogs scored and made a two point conversion to trim the lead to three. They attempted an onside kick. The ball bounced off of a Nevada players shoulder pads and began bounding back towards the Fresno State players. Most of them had overpersued the ball though. Anthony Pudewell bounced on the ball for the Wolfpack to give them the ball back, sealing the Nevada win. It was a wild moment, and it was a thrilling play that clinched a share of the WAC title for Nevada. If Fresno State wins this weekend against Louisiana Tech, they will share the title with Boise State and Nevada. A Fresno loss means that Boise and Nevada will share it.

Week Thirteen: Friday

2005-11-25T09:00:00.000-05:00

Weekend Stars
Thoughts on who the stars of the weekend will be.

Game of the Week- Georgia at Georgia Tech- In a weekend where there are few games that really impact the national title race and therefore are more important, this game looks to be the best of the bunch. While it will have no effect on the national title race, except if LSU gets into the picture they will want to face a higher ranked Georgia team in the SEC Championship Game, this game ought to be the most entertaining of the weekend. Both teams have very good defenses. Both teams have athletic quarterbacks, even though D.J. Shockley has outplayed Reggie Ball by a lot. The problem is Georgia Tech tends to play either very up or very down. If they are up for this game, which they should be since this is a rivalry game, the Yellow Jackets have a very real shot to take down the Dawgs. If they are down, the Dawgs should win in a romp. This ought to be as entertaining of a game as there is this weekend.

Upset Special- Notre Dame at Stanford- It is very true that the Irish should come in focused and should play very hard. Still, there is something about this game that makes me take pause. Maybe it is the fact that Stanford (before last weekend's beating at the hands of Cal) had looked very good against any team not named USC in the Pac Ten. Maybe it is that the Irish are going on the road. Maybe it is the fact that the Irish have looked somewhat flat in their last few games and that usually catches up with a team. Remember, just because it is here does not mean that I am picking an upset, but rather telling everyone to watch out for an upset in this game.

Team of the Week- Virginia Tech Hokies. The Hokies should come out fired up at home with the ACC Coastal Division on the line. Given new life with Georgia Tech's upset of Miami last weekend, the Hokies are ready to lay it to a team, much like they did to Virginia last week. The unfortunate team standing in their way is North Carolina. The Tar Heels will play very hard and will try to hang in there, but at some point, the roof is going to cave in on them and the Hokies should win in a rout.

Players of the Week-
1) Vince Young, Texas- Going against Texas A&M's porous defense should mean that Young will have a huge day. He's got no reason not to be focused and prepared to play very well against the Aggies.
2) Darius Walker, Notre Dame- Stanford's run defense has not been good. Walker has been good. Most weeks, the Irish rely on Brady Quinn and a balanced offense. This week, Walker will steal the show.
3) Adrian Peterson, Oklahoma- Oklahoma State hasn't exactly been playing tough defense this year for the most part. Peterson should explode for a huge day on the ground against the Cowboys.
4) Brian Brohm, Louisville- The Cardinals quarterback has huge games at home, and this week he is going against Syracuse. Ummm...yeah. This should be a gigantic game.
5) Marcus Vick, Virginia Tech- He has played well in every game except the Miami game. North Carolina could slow him down this weekend, but Vick is playing right now to prove all the doubters wrong.

Week Thirteen: Thursday

2005-11-24T09:00:00.000-05:00

Week Thirteen: Wednesday

2005-11-23T09:00:00.000-05:00

Overreaction Wednesday
Getting a little bit crazy and having some knee jerk reactions to last weekend's games.

Fresno State will lose one of their next two games. They've teased us before with games like the one against USC only to lose to a WAC team that they shouldn't lose to. With Louisiana Tech and Nevada left on the schedule, one loss is not out of the question. I would be surprised if it happened, but remember, this is an "overreaction."

Tennessee will finish last in the SEC East. All it takes is for them to lose to Kentucky this Saturday. For a team that started off third in the country, this is a long fall.

The BCS picture is much more muddled than it appears. There is at least one more twist left in this season. Whether it involves USC, Texas, Notre Dame, or a team trying to clinch their division like Colorado, LSU, or Virginia Tech or someone else altogether is too tough to tell. But since when did the last two weeks of the season produce NO surprises to the BCS picture?

Remember that some of these things are gross overreactions to the way teams played this weekend. These are not necessarily straight predictions, but rather thoughts that many may not consider that are very distinct possibilities.

News & Notes

Accepted bowl invitations:
TCU- Houston Bowl
Utah- Emerald Bowl
Navy- Poinsettia Bowl
Colorado State- Poinsettia Bowl
BYU- Las Vegas Bowl
New Mexico- a conditional to Fort Worth Bowl (if there are not enough Big 12 or Conference USA teams available)

Reggie McNeal is healthy and will play Friday against Texas. He has to have the game of his life for the Aggies to have a shot at the Longhorns.

Rant of the Week

This week's rant is an interesting one.

I have officially had it with the college football media in this country. It is like they are entirely brain dead when it comes to college football. Case in point: Margin of victory. Texas is a good team, but just because Vince Young is still playing in the fourth quarter against a 3 win team does NOT make their margin of victory more impressive than a 35 point win where Matt Leinart gets 1 series after halftime. I saw an AP reporter saying "Texas just hasn't played as many close games as USC." Well what a revalation, note that Texas is up 50-3 and Vince Young throws his 5th touchdown pass (Kansas, Baylor). The media rewards this lack of sportsmanship how? Moving Texas up to number 1. Well, i have a news flash for you: Texas scored 0 points last year against an Oklahoma defense that got torched by USC. Oklahoma had more media support in 2004 and look where it got them. The media is so arrogant that they want to be the giant killer and decide championships that should be decided on the field. I am not saying USC doesn't have faults and rough spots. But having close games against 2 really good teams, Notre Dame and Fresno State, does not indicate any weakness. It does indicate that USC played 2 difficult out of conference opponents versus 1 for Texas. The Ohio State game was damn close, in fact anyone who watched it would say Ohio State gave it away, yet I don't see any media types having enough neurons to remember how close that game was. Another News Flash: We the College football fans are going to get to see a championship this year, and any of you media types who change your vote to give Texas a championship without winning it on the field are fools.

--Geoff Sigmund
Fresno, CA

Thanks for writing Geoff!

Week Thirteen: Tuesday

2005-11-22T09:00:00.000-05:00

Under Pressure
Dennis Franchione, Texas A&M

His time may be done regardless of what he does against Texas on Friday afternoon, but Franchione needs a solid performance against the Longhorns to try to keep his job. This game may have no effect on his job status, but he really needs a solid showing to get the fans off of his back. A win would be huge, and would get the Aggies (a preseason darling for being a darkhorse for the national title) to a bowl game. This is as big of a rivalry game as there can be for Texas A&M this weekend.

Reggie Ball, Georgia Tech

Reggie Ball may have produced just well enough against Miami to get the Yellow Jackets to the win, but he would like to lead his team to a dramatic upset of the Georgia Bulldogs as well. Ball has been wildly erratic over the last few years, as have the Yellow Jackets. Now, playing at home against the Bulldogs, this may be their best chance in a while to beat Georgia. A win by the Jackets will prove that they have finally arrived as a consistent player on the national scene, while a loss would reaffirm that they do not belong on the national scene yet. The defense will have to slow D.J. Shockley down, but Ball will have to lead the offense on a couple of scoring drives in the first half to get his team the momentum it needs to be able to upset the Bulldogs.

College Gameday Site
Houston, Texas

This year's Bayou Classic features Grambling and Southern and will take place in Houston, Texas, due to the hurricanes that moved through New Orleans. Grambling is 8-1, while Southern is 4-4. These games are generally pretty much fun to watch and feature some of the best bands you will ever see. It's unusual to see College Gameday go to a site like this, but this weekend there are not a ton of must see games, and the gang probably wants to do some human interest stories on New Orleans. It ought to be an interesting week.

Thoughts on the Rankings

LSU and Penn State are very close in the BCS standings. Still, the computer rankings are wildly in favor of Penn State. If there is a loss somewhere along the line for either Texas or USC, the Nittany Lions seem to be the favorite to move into a top two spot. Still, if LSU wins their next two games (Arkansas and the SEC Championship Game) they will likely move up a little bit in the rankings. This could mean that they catch Penn State, but it seems unlikely at this point.

Texas has every number one vote except for one from the computers. The gap continues to close between USC and the 'Horns for number one in the BCS. More and more people are beginning to vote Texas number one in the human polls, which means that Texas may overtake USC at some point if they win impressively these next two weeks. Not that it matters because as long as they keep on winning they will both be in the national championship game.

Fresno State is still only ranked in two computers. This is proof yet again that computers can't watch football games. For the most part, I like the computer rankings and have no problem with them. However, they need to be allowed to take margin of victory into account (up to a point) so that the computers realize that the Bulldogs just lost by eight at USC, their number two team. This was not the 30 point home blowout that the Trojans normally pull.

My Rankings

The rankings continue to sort themselves out. Still, there are wild flunctuations in my rankings from week to week. Why is this? With each passing week, we are learning more about the teams and it becomes important to move the teams around based on the things that we learn. Also, sometimes there are overreactions to certain factors from one week, and so I adjust appropriately for the next week. Two teams nearly made the Top 25 this week that missed the cut. One is Iowa State, and the other is Iowa. They are very close to being ranked. The number in parentheses is last week's rank.

1. USC 11-0 (1)
2. Texas 10-0 (2)
3. Penn State 10-1 (5)
4. LSU 9-1 (4)
5. Virginia Tech 9-1 (7)
6. Ohio State 9-2 (8)
7. Oregon 10-1 (10)
8. Notre Dame 8-2 (9)
9. Auburn 9-2 (12)
10. Miami, FL 8-2 (3)
11. UCLA 9-1 (11)
12. Fresno State 8-2 (14)
13. Georgia 8-2 (13)
14. West Virginia 8-1 (15)
15. Alabama 9-2 (6)
16. Florida 7-3 (17)
17. TCU 10-1 (18)
18. Georgia Tech 7-3 (--)
19. Florida State 7-3 (19)
20. Louisville 7-2 (23)
21. Texas Tech 9-2 (--)
22. Michigan 7-4 (21)
23. Boston College 8-3 (25)
24. Clemson 7-4 (--)
25. South Carolina 7-4 (16)

Dropped Out: Minnesota 7-4 (20), Oklahoma 6-4 (22), Iowa State 7-3 (24)
Part of my reason for ranking Minnesota where I did last week was their head-to-head win over Michigan. Still, they got slaughetered by Iowa, and the Wolverines did beat Iowa. Minnesota has become a very average football team right now. Oklahoma got beat by Texas Tech. This established Texas Tech as a pretty good team (even if the final touchdown was razor close) and it proved that Oklahoma still has some work to be done. Iowa State fell out because too many other teams needed to move into the rankings. Still, the Cyclones, with a win this week, should find themselves back in the rankings somewhere. They are a very good team.

Biggest drop by a team still in the rankings: 9- Alabama, South Carolina. Alabama was humiliated by Auburn and now have lost to two straight. Their early season success is beginning to look like a mirage. South Carolina was on cloud nine after last week's dramatic win over Florida. Now, after a loss at home to Clemson, they had to fall behind the Tigers. The only place the Tigers made sense was at #24, so the Gamecocks had to be #25.

Smallest drop by a team that lost: Smallest drop? 1-Michigan. The biggest jump by a team that lost? 2- Fresno State. Michigan only dropped one for a very good performance against Ohio State. Fresno State moved up two spots in spite of their loss because of how well they played at USC. No other team has taken USC's best punch and lived to tell about it. No other team has come anywhere close to beating the Trojans at home. They are a very good football team and deserved to be rewarded for their perfomance, not punished. They can't be too far behind Notre Dame, who is also being rewarded for their close loss to USC.

Biggest drop by a team that won: 0- USC, Texas, LSU, Georgia. USC and Texas have very little moving room (although Texas is gaining on USC). LSU stayed put because their body of work ranks just slightly behind Penn State's, who jumped them. Georgia was jumped by Fresno State, and Alabama fell behind them, which meant that Georgia stayed put.

Biggest jump by a team that was in my rankings last week: 3- Oregon, Auburn, Louisville. The Ducks moved up three with their impressive win over Oregon State. Auburn moved up three because they are probably the best team in the SEC right now, and hammered Alabama. Louisville moved up three spots without playing a game. They are a very good team, but need to play like it on the road.

Razor thin. The difference between USC and Texas is razor thin. I could not punish USC for their close game with Fresno State because I thought that Fresno would keep it close. Still, the way that the offense moved the ball against the Trojans has to be troubling and remind people of how Oklahoma's defense started getting exposed at this point last year. The difference between Penn State, LSU, and Virginia Tech is also razor thin. Those three are all three right there. If USC or Texas lose, the battle for who moves up to number two will be very tight in my mind. That's why it will be very important to keep my eyes glued to the Arkansas-LSU game this weekend, along with the Virgina Tech-North Carolina game. By the way, UCLA still has an outside shot at the national title. If they beat USC impressively on December 3, they will shoot up the rankings and make a serious move at playing at home in the Rose Bowl for the national title.

Week Thirteen: Monday

2005-11-21T09:00:00.000-05:00

Weekend in Review

Game of the Week
Ohio State 25, Michigan 21

The Buckeyes came from behind to win a share of the Big Ten title against the Wolverines. This rivalry is one of the best in the game, and this one lived up to the billing. Antonio Pittman ran the ball in from three yards away for the game winning touchdown with just 24 seconds left in the game. The Buckeyes had driven 88 yards in the final four and a half minutes for the winning touchdown. The Buckeyes scored two touchdowns in the final seven minutes to come up with the win.

Upset of the Week
Georgia Tech 14, Miami 10

It was stunning that the Hurricanes, the nation's number three team, went down at home. But these are the Yellow Jackets, and they are one of the most wildly unpredictable teams in the country. The game was controlled by Georgia Tech once they took the lead. Kyle Wright seemed to take a major step back for Miami. Now, all Virginia Tech has to do is win this week against North Carolina and they will win the ACC Coastal. Miami must beat Virginia and hope that Virginia Tech loses to win the division. Truly, it was a remarkable result, pointing out once again why we as fans should never just assume that one team is going to beat another team.

Team of the Week
Penn State Nittany Lions

Joe Paterno and the Nittany Lions became the first team to clinch a BCS bowl bid when they beat Michigan State 31-22 on Saturday. It was a great day for the program, and they are not eliminated yet from the national championship race. At 10-1 and in the Top Five, their season is done until January. However, they get to sit and wait as all the teams ahead of them have at least one game left. There is still a chance they could steal the national title. The Nittany Lions dominated the Spartans and left no doubt to who would win the game from very early on. They finish tied with Ohio State for the Big Ten title. However, they beat Ohio State in October, so they will be the Big Ten's representative in the BCS.

Player of the Week
Reggie Bush, USC

Are you kidding me? Reggie Bush put on an absolute show on Saturday night in the Trojans 50-42 win over Fresno State. While I am not convinced that Bush deserves the Heisman Trophy (sometimes his numbers just aren't as impressive as people think they are), he put up an unbelievable 513 all purpose yards on Saturday night. He returned seven kickoffs for 135 yards and one punt for 16 yards. He caught three passes for 68 yards. He ran the ball 23 times for 294 yards and two touchdowns. That comes out to 31 touches for 513 yards. Wow. Now, Bush made two bad plays in a row in the fourth quarter, when he fumbled a kickoff, setting up a Fresno touchdown that gave the Bulldogs the lead. Then on the following kickoff, he committed a personal foul that gave the Trojans the ball inside their own ten yard line. But Bush promptly lead them down the field for the go ahead score. He was phenomenal on Saturday night.

Stat of the Week
333 rushing yards for Virginia Tech.

It was an impressive show by the Hokies against Virginia this past Saturday in their 52-14 win. Virginia Tech had over 500 total yards, but 333 of them came on the ground, dominating the Cavaliers physically. Branden Ore and Cedric Humes both went over 100 yards and the Hokies dominated from start to finish against a pretty good Virginia team. Obviously, the Hokies were a little ticked off about their loss to Miami two weeks ago.

Play of the Week
Smith's 27 yard pass to Gonzalez.

Troy Smith spun free from a Wolverine defender and fired a 27 yard pass to Anthony Gonzalez, who went up and got knocked off his feet at the four yard line. The fact that Smith got away from pressure was impressive enough. The fact that Gonzalez caught the ball was also impressive. The fact that he held onto it as he hit the ground was even more impressive. That came with under a minute to play and Ohio State driving, down 21-19. It was a great catch in a clutch moment.

Turnover of the Week
Paul Pinegar's interception in the endzone

The Fresno State Bulldogs battled all night long, and were within eight (50-42) with time running down. The Bulldogs had gotten to the USC 26 yard line with 1:13 to play in regulation. Pinegar lofted a pass down towards the endzone, and Darnell Bing intercepted the pass, clinching the game for the Trojans and keeping their winning streak alive at 33 games. This was the closest anyone has come to the Trojans since Notre Dame nearly beat them last month. This was the closest anyone has come in the Coliseum all year. Pinegar's fifth turnover of the game sealed the deal.

Key First Half Moment of the Week
Ben Obomanu's 45 yard touchdown run.

Obomanu ran the ball on a reverse for 45 yards and a touchdown against Alabama in the Iron Bowl. It gave Auburn a 21-0 lead with four minutes left in the first quarter. There was no way Alabama's offense was going to be able to muster enough to get them back into the game at that point. That touchdown basically put that game away in the first quarter. Given that it was the Iron Bowl and the winner kept alive hopes for an SEC West title, that was huge.

Moment of the Week
Vanderbilt finally beats Tennessee

After a 22 year losing streak to the Vols, Vanderbilt was estatic to beat their in-state rivals. Jay Cutler fired a five yard touchdown pass to Earl Bennett with 1:11 left in the game and Rick Clausen threw an interception in the endzone as time expired and Vanderbilt had beaten Tennessee 28-24. Vandy still will not go to a bowl game (mainly due to losses to Middle Tennessee and Kentucky), but now, neither will the Vols.

Week Twelve: Friday

2005-11-18T09:00:00.000-05:00

Weekend Stars
Thoughts on who the stars of the weekend will be.

Game of the Week- Fresno State at USC- While the game may or may not live up to the expectations, it is clearly the most intriguing game of the weekend. While Alabama-Auburn, Michigan-Ohio State, and even Penn State-Michigan State carries more national interest, few games are more intriguing than this one. Can the traditional "giant killers" (Fresno State) beat another giant (USC)? Surely a WAC team isn't going to be the one to end USC's 32 game winning streak, right? This is the about as good as it gets in the world of David vs. Goliath, because David is capable of beating Goliath. This is not San Jose State against USC. Fresno State is good enough to keep it close. It is worth watching the late game. Yes, USC might win by six touchdowns. But if they did, they would deserve a lot of credit, because this Fresno State team is good.

Upset Special- Oklahoma at Texas Tech- The Red Raiders are favored in this game. The winner really helps themselves in the bowl pecking order coming out of the Big Twelve. Oklahoma (while not playing brilliantly) has played better lately, and Texas Tech has not beaten a really good team all year. Not that the Sooners have either. The fact that the Red Raiders have struggled so much against the Sooners in recent years only makes it seem more likely that the Oklahoma can pull off the upset. Yes, Oklahoma isn't as good as in recent years, but Texas Tech just lost to Oklahoma State. Can they possibly be ready to take on Oklahoma?

Team of the Week-Miami Hurricanes- Maybe Georgia Tech can focus after they got handed probation yesterday. Maybe the Yellow Jackets will be able to rally in Miami. Maybe Kyle Wright won't stay one of the hottest quarterbacks in the country. But it seems far more likely that the Hurricanes win rather easily against a pretty good Yellow Jackets team. The 'Canes are ready to take on the Yellow Jackets and should find their way to a win on their way towards the ACC Coastal title.

Players of the Week-
1) D.J. Shockley, Georgia- Shockley is going up against a Kentucky defense that has averaged giving up 46 points the last two weeks. Of course, they are 1-1 in those games. Still Shockley should have a big game as the Dawgs try to clinch the SEC East.
2) Kyle Wright, Miami- Wright has been playing better and better. The Yellow Jackets have a great defense, but they still could struggle to slow down the Wright train.
3) Adrian Peterson, Oklahoma- Peterson has been playing better and better as he has gotten healthier and healthier. Time for him to lick his chops as he goes up against the Texas Tech defense.
4) Michael Robinson, Penn State- Michigan State's defense has struggled all year long, and Robinson has been exposing struggling defenses all season. Robinson should explode, although this is the Penn State-Michigan State game, so anything could happen.
5) LenDale White, USC- Fresno State may be able to contend with Bush and his speed and playmaking. They may be able to slow down Leinart and his passing game. But they will have a hard time slowing down a bruising back like White. White has the capability to put up big numbers on Fresno, while Bush and Leinart do too. However, if I had to pick one, then I would pick White.

Week Twelve: Thursday

2005-11-17T09:00:00.000-05:00

Viewer's Guide

Which games should you watch this weekend? What games should you be keeping your eyes on during each time period? We've got it all worked out for you.

The day is divided into five parts. Some are more unequal than others due to the start time of the games. All times are Eastern. The time periods are early games (start time before 2:00), afternoon (start time from 2:15-5:00), late afternoon (start time from 5:15-7:15), evening (start time from 7:30-9:45), and late night (start time after 10:00). The games are ranked by time period and give you a couple of reasons to watch each game, whether it is questions that need to be answered or something else altogether. The games are the games listed on CollegeFootballNews.com as the television games for this weekend. Only Saturday games are included.

Let's get it started!

Early Games

1. Ohio State at Michigan (1:00 ABC)- 1) This might just be the top rivalry in all of college football. 2) Jim Tressell has gone 3-1 in his four years against Michigan. Given that the reason John Cooper left was because he could never beat Michigan, this is a good sign for him. 3) If Michigan State beats Penn State later on in the day, the winner of this game will get a BCS bid. Ohio State still has a shot to get an at-large bid to the BCS, but the Wolverines must win and hope for a Penn State loss.

2. Oklahoma at Texas Tech (12:00 FSN)- 1) The winner of this game will finish second in the Big Twelve South and help themselves dramatically in the bowl pecking order. 2) Adrian Peterson is back and he's healthy, and the Texas Tech defense is anything but stellar. Throw in Rhett Bomar and his continued development and we might see Oklahoma lay some big points on Texas Tech. Of course, the Red Raiders know how to keep up on the scoreboard themselves with Cody Hodges. 3) Texas Tech needs to beat Oklahoma to prove that they are for real and not a team that beat up on a bunch of teams with bad records. Mike Leach has always struggled against Oklahoma, but this is not the same Sooners of years past. Can they rebound from their bad loss to Oklahoma State?

3. Kentucky at Georgia (12:30 JP/Gameplan)- 1) Georgia wins, they win the SEC East. Georgia loses, South Carolina wins the SEC East. Doesn't get much more important than that. 2) Rafael Little is the nation's leader in All-Purpose yards. Bet you didn't know that. Can he throw a scare into the Georgia defense and special teams? 3) Georgia has lost two in a row. Where is there confidence? Kentucky has won two out of three. Where is there confidence? There is reason to believe that Kentucky will be sky high and Georgia will not be. Georgia should win this game in a romp, but if Kentucky can get off to a good start, they have a chance to keep the good vibes going.

4. Minnesota at Iowa (12:00 ESPN2)- 1) The Floyd of Rosedale Trophy is about to be awarded. Don't you want to see that? 2) Iowa has been playing much better down the stretch. They always seem to catch a few breaks at home. They certainly would like Drew Tate and the offense to catch fire as they try to help their bowl destination be a little sunnier. 3) Laurence Maroney is one of the best running backs in the country. Coming back from the ankle injury, he hopes to have a monster effort against the Hawkeyes defense.

5. Virginia Tech at Virginia (12:00 ESPN)- 1) It is a very bitter rivalry and Virginia is holding out hope that they can still win the ACC Coastal. They must win out (Virginia Tech and Miami) and hope that Miami loses to Georgia Tech and that North Carolina beats Virginia Tech. It's a longshot. Virginia Tech wins the Coastal by winning out and hoping that someone beats Miami. 2) Marcus Vick and Marques Hagans are two of the more exciting quarterbacks in college football when they are playing well. 3) Where will Virginia Tech's head be after their twenty point loss to Miami just two weeks ago?

6. Boston College at Maryland (12:00 JP/Gameplan)- 1) Maryland needs one more win to become bowl eligible. Next week's game at North Carolina State will be anything but an easy place to get a sixth win. 2) Mathias Kiwanuka is one of the best defensive players in the country when he is healthy. He hasn't been healthy much this year. This is the last chance to see him play before a bowl game. 3) Sam Hollenbach has been a solid quarterback for the Terps this season. He has gotten the job done.

7. Vanderbilt at Tennessee (12:30 JP/Gameplan)- 1) The Vols have to win their last two games against Vanderbilt and Kentucky to become bowl eligible. Not exactly what the Vols had in mind when they started this season. 2) This is your last chance to see Jay Cutler in college. He has been a tremendous quarterback that has often gone overlooked at Vanderbilt. 3) The Vols haven't lost to the 'Dores since 1982. This may be one of Vanderbilt's best chances to end that streak.

8. Northwestern at Illinois (12:00 Gameplan)- 1) Illinois would love to get their first conference win. Northwestern needs a win to help them in the bowl pecking order of the Big Ten. 2) Tyrell Sutton and Brett Basanez are explosive on offense for the Wildcats. The Illini haven't been great on defense. 3) Pierre Thomas Jr. is a very good running back for the Illini.

9. Cincinnati at South Florida (12:00 Gameplan)- 1) The Bulls are three wins away from winning the Big East. Cincinnati must win out to be bowl eligible. 2) Dustin Grutza is the quarterback for the Bearcats. Can he spark the upset of the Bulls? He has been a little inconsistent this year, but he is a pretty good quarterback. 3) Andre Hall is one of the more exciting players in the country that nobody knows about. He leads the offense for the Bulls.

10. Arkansas State at Army (12:00 ESPNU)- 1) Could it be? The Black Knights are riding a three game winning streak and look to have won four in a row heading into their showdown with Navy. 2) Zac Dahman is an excellent quarterback for Bobby Ross' team. 3) The Indians need one more win to become bowl eligible, although they probably need to win the Sun Belt to get to a bowl game. This is one of the best running games in the country. Can the Black Knights slow them down?

11. Temple at Navy (1:30 CSTV)- 1) The Midshipmen need this win to become bowl eligible. If they do not win, they will need a win over Army to get to a bowl game. You never want to have to count on winning your rivalry game against a rising opponent to get to a bowl game. 2) Temple has been downright bad for most of this season. Of course their schedule has been brutal. Is this the week they put a scare into a far better foe? 3) Lamar Owens runs the offense very well for Navy. He does a very good job.

Afternoon

1. Alabama at Auburn (3:30 CBS)- 1) If LSU loses to either Ole Miss or Arkansas, the winner of this game wins the SEC West. 2) Come on. It's the Iron Bowl. You just have to watch this rivalry. 3) Brodie Croyle, Ken Darby and the Alabama offense is mostly inept. The defense is a brick wall. Auburn's Brandon Cox, Kenny Irons, and the Auburn offense has become far better as the season has progressed. The defense is not as tough. This is an interesting match-up of strength vs. strength and weakness vs. weakness. It is well worth watching.

2. Penn State at Michigan State (4:00 ESPN)- 1) If Penn State wins, they win the Big Ten and earn the first bid to the BCS. Michigan State must win to get to a bowl game. 2) Michael Robinson might be worthy of some Heisman consideration. He has really been playing well lately. 3) The Spartans have gone 1-5 since their 4-0 start. Is this the day that Drew Stanton rediscovers how good he was at the beginning of the year?

3. Syracuse at Notre Dame (2:30 NBC)- 1) If the Irish win out, they are likely going to the Fiesta Bowl. It all has to begin here. 2) Brady Quinn is still hoping to make a late push at the Heisman Trophy. 3) While Syracuse is suffering through a brutal 1-8 season, Damien Rhodes continues to be a very good running back. Against an average Notre Dame defense, the Orange best chance is to hope that Rhodes has a monster game.

4. Utah at BYU (3:00 Gameplan)- 1) This is one of the most underrated rivalries in the business. This is one great rivalry. 2) Utah needs a win to become bowl eligible. BYU needs a win to lock up second in the Mountain West. 3) John Beck has put up big numbers for the Cougars this year. He is a very good quarterback.

5. Washington State at Washington (3:15 FSN)- 1) The Apple Cup tends to be one of the more exciting games of the year each and every year. 2) Jerome Harrison is the Pac Ten's leading rusher and has been doing an excellent job for the Cougars this year. 3) Washington won for the first time in Pac Ten play last week. Washington State still hasn't won a Pac Ten game. The Cougars have been close in every game (except USC) but haven't been able to pull it off yet. Can they finally win one?

6. Nevada at Utah State (3:05 Gameplan)- 1) A win in this game would put Nevada in a position to be able to beat Fresno State and tie for the WAC title. They also need a win to help themselves in bowl positioning. 2) B.J. Mitchell has already run for over 1000 yards this season through nine games. 3) Leon Jackson III does it all for the Aggies. He is the team's quarterback and the team's leading rusher.

7. Idaho at Boise State (3:05 Gameplan)- 1) Boise State needs a win to keep their slim WAC title hopes alive. They also need to win put themselves in a better position for a bowl bid. 2) Jared Zabransky and the Broncos offense looks to get back on track after not scoring in the final 59 minutes against Fresno State last week. 3) Steven Wichman is a pretty good quarterback for the Vandals.
Late Afternoon

1.Clemson at South Carolina (7:00 Gameplan/ESPN2)- 1) The Tigers and the Gamecocks both won in huge upsets over Florida teams last week. Now, they both look to validate that win with a win in this game. 2) Clemson has owned South Carolina in recent years, including last year's romp that ended in a fight that wound up keeping both teams out of bowl games. 3) Blake Mitchell has played well this year, and last week was a crowning moment for him. For Clemson, Charlie Whitehurst played a great game last week. It is a very interesting quarterback match-up.

2. Oregon State at Oregon (6:45 FSN)- 1) It is an absolutely critical Civil War. Oregon State needs a win to be bowl eligible. Oregon needs a win to keep alive their hopes for a BCS at-large berth. 2) How long can Oregon keep on surviving? The last two weeks without Kellen Clemens and with Dennis Dixon and Grady Leaf have been two thrilling games that came down to the very end. 3) This is your last chance to see Mike Haas at Oregon State. He may be the best receiver in the country.

3. California at Stanford (7:00 ABC/Gameplan)- 1) It's the Big Game. Cal is looking to improve their bowl stock, while Stanford is looking to get bowl eligible. (If only they could take back that loss to UC-Davis.) 2) Marshawn Lynch and Justin Forsett are excellent running backs capable of putting up big numbers on the Cardinal defense. 3) Trent Edwards is a very good quarterback and will be looking to expose the Bears secondary.

4. UAB at UTEP (6:00 i/PAX)- 1) Darrell Hackney is a very talented quarterback for the Blazers. They must win their next two games to be bowl eligible. 2) Jordan Palmer is a very good quarterback for the Miners. They must win one of their next two games to win the CUSA West. 3) UTEP is clinging to their national ranking and their 8-1 record. Every win helps keep them ranked.

5. New Mexico State at San Jose State (6:00 Gameplan)- 1) The loser of this game will finish last in the WAC. New Mexico State has zero wins on the season, while San Jose State has one. That means that the two teams are a combined 1-18 on the season. 2) Hal Mumme's offense has produced their three highest point outputs of the season in their last four games. Maybe the offense is starting to come around a bit. 3) Adam Tafralis has been slowly improving, bit by bit. The Spartans quarterback isn't too bad, but he would love to have a huge game against the Aggies defense.

Evening

1. Georgia Tech at Miami, FL (7:45 ESPN)- 1) Miami needs to win to keep on track to win the ACC Coastal. 2) Kyle Wright has really come of age lately. He has developed into a top notch quarterback in the ACC. 3) So which Georgia Tech shows up? The one that beat Auburn? Or the one who lost to North Carolina State?

2. LSU at Ole Miss (7:45 ESPN2)- 1) LSU needs to win to stay on track to win the SEC West. 2) Both LSU and Ole Miss have excellent defenses. Ole Miss has struggled to find any offense this year, while LSU has been inconsistent on offense. JaMarcus Russell is a good quarterback, but just not great...yet. 3) This is a great rivalry, even though Ole Miss' primary rival is Mississippi State. These two teams have played a lot of classics over the years.

3. Memphis at Southern Miss (8:30 CSTV)- 1) DeAngelo Williams is a very talented running back. This may be one of your last chances to see them. The Tigers need to win out to become bowl eligible. 2) Southern Miss needs one more win to become bowl eligible. If they win out and UCF loses a game, they win the CUSA East. 3) This will be Southern Miss' third game in twelve days. They played last Tuesday and last Sunday and now again this Saturday. Will fatigue start to set in?

4. Wyoming at San Diego State (8:00 Gameplan)- 1) Corey Bramlet has been a very good quarterback for the Cowboys. This is his final game. 2) Kevin O'Connell has really come around for the Aztecs as the season has progressed. After starting the year 0-3, the Aztecs have won 4 of their last seven games. They have two games remaining, so they can still finish at .500 for the year. 3) Five straight losses by the Cowboys have quieted the fans cry for more respect. They certainly would like to get back on a winning track and get to 5-6.

Late Night

1. Fresno State at USC (10:15 FSN)- 1) Watch those Trojans! With three more wins, they will become the first team ever to win three straight AP national titles. Of course, they would still need to win three straight BCS championships, which could come next year. 2) Does Fresno State have a chance to get to a BCS bowl game? If they can win out, they are still in the hunt to get into it. 3) Paul Pinegar, Wendell Mathis, Matt Leinart, Reggie Bush, and LenDale White. This might be the most offensive talent that has been on the field in any game so far this season. Sure, Oregon, Washington State, and Notre Dame all have some claim to that when they played USC. But this is a solid Fresno team.

Week Twelve: Wednesday

2005-11-16T09:00:00.000-05:00

Overreaction Wednesday
Getting a little bit crazy and having some knee jerk reactions to last weekend's games.

Every school should give a statement in support of the head coach. Look at what Nebraska and Kentucky did this past weekend, especially Kentucky. Nebraska did win against Kansas State, but it wasn't overly impressive. But Kentucky beat Vanderbilt, jumping out to a 31 point lead before winning by just five. Call me crazy, but I think the Wildcats will put a heck of a scare into either Georgia or Tennessee. They may come up short, but they will play it close.

Texas will be challenged in one of their next two games. No team goes through a season without a scare somewhere along the way. Sure, Ohio State nearly beat the Longhorns, but that was a long time ago. There is one more scare out there. Now, is it against Texas A&M and the explosive Reggie McNeal? Or is it in the Big Twelve Championship Game against Colorado, Iowa State, or Missouri? The 'Horns have already blown out Colorado and Missouri this year, so a game against Iowa State might be very interesting.

In the "getting challenged" department, throw in LSU. Either Arkansas or Ole Miss will try to throw the SEC West race back up in the air. One of them at least will play the Tigers very close and give the Alabama-Auburn winner some hope that they could actually win the SEC West. LSU is a good team, but not so good that they are above struggling against these two teams. Other teams have been struggling over the last month or so with them, so there is no reason to believe LSU will not.

Call the Conference USA Championship Game the "Redemption Bowl." With Southern Miss' loss on Sunday, it really looks like the game will be between UCF and UTEP. UCF is coached by George O'Leary, the man who was fired from Notre Dame without coaching a game. UTEP is coached by Mike Price, the man who was fired from Alabama without coaching a game. There are still hurdles for both teams, especially UTEP, but the Miners can afford one more conference loss.

Remember that some of these things are gross overreactions to the way teams played this weekend. These are not necessarily straight predictions, but rather thoughts that many may not consider that are very distinct possibilities.

News & Notes

Bill Snyder, Kansas State's head coach, is retiring. He turned around a once dormant program, though he struggled to ever truly get the Wildcats to the next level, as they only won one conference championship. Still, Snyder built a program at Kansas State. Who knows if they will ever find their way back to the top of the ladder? But they have been there now. The program is in much better shape now than when he arrived.

Laurence Maroney, Minnesota's running back, has stated that he will definitely be playing against Iowa this weekend. The running back has an ankle injury that will keep him from being 100 percent. Still, he insists that he is going to play against the Hawkeyes.

The four finalists for the Lombardi Trophy are Elvis Dumervil, Rod Wright, A.J. Hawk, and Paul Posluszny. If I had a vote, I believe I would vote for Dumervil at this point, though that is subject to change in the coming weeks. Dumervil has been an absolutely dominant force so far this year for Louisville.

Quotables

John Wefald, Kansas State's president: "The truth is, Coach Snyder exceeded all expectations. Indeed, Coach Snyder and his staff made K-State into a national football power. There is no question in my mind that Coach Snyder orchestrated and engineered the single greatest turnaround in American Division I collegiate football history. Bill Snyder's legacy is secure here at Kansas State University. He will always be remembered as K-State's greatest football coach and arguably one of the nation's greatest football coaches over the past generation."

Rich Brooks, Kentucky's head coach: “We saw Auburn at home and now we get to go on the road and play that kind of team...I’d much rather be playing for a bowl than playing the spoiler but that’s what we will have to do for now."

Pete Carroll, USC head coach: "I think having the bye is advantageous but I think three weeks is more than you need to gain that advantage. We had a chance to schedule a worthy opponent that is going to fill the Coliseum up again, which is going to challenge us and make us that much better. Fresno has wanted this game for a long time, and a lot of people didn't want to play us, so it seemed like a good match up. So after all of the alternatives I think it has turned out to be a tremendous game. It is going to be exciting and challenging and all of that."

Pat Hill, Fresno State's head coach: "We just need to keep winning. Of course this would be a very big win for our program to go out and beat the number one team in the nation. If it was the last game of the year it would be more important. We still have two games left after this one. The big thing is that we have to be ready to play each week, just like USC has to be ready to play each week. The reason they are successful is because they take it one game at a time. Obviously a win would be big, and it would make the next two games even bigger."

Rant of the Week

I love reading the responses to the Rant of the Week each week. This week's could be very interesting, because it is touching on a subject that is near and dear to every college football fans heart...what is wrong with the BCS? Does the BCS work? Well, these subjects are tackled here.

The BCS sucks, but that is why we all talk about it. What would we have to complain about if the BCS worked? The BCS was created to steal the spotlight that was given every year in the press for the supporters of the "other" teams that thought they were the best. Come on, Florida State has lost twice and I'll bet you can't find a handful of Seminole fans who don't believe they are the number one team in the country. The BCS is not the answer to the problem. There is no correct answer. The human element will always be controversial. However, when you take 6 computers and enter the same information into them how do they get six different answers? Those 6 rankings are based on the biased parameters set into them by the "human" programmers. One computer, one set of parameters, no controversy. Is it just me?

--Chris Langnes
Venice, Florida

Of course, this was written before Florida State lost their third game. More than likely, FSU fans are not claiming to be number one right now. Still, this raises the question of if the BCS is a good thing because it keeps everyone talking about football. Also, it asks the question about if one computer program is how the BCS should determine their top two teams. If you have any thoughts on this, please let me know.

As always, keep those e-mails coming!

For those of you who do not know, my blog can be viewed daily on www.CollegeFootballNews.com. I began this blog to give myself more exposure by being on more than just CFN. I have been writing for CFN for the past four years and have only been doing this blog this year. I strongly encourage all of you to head on over to CFN. It's a very good source for college football information.

There also are two articles that do not appear on here over there every week: the Thursday Night Throwdown (previewing Thursday night's game) and Storylines (talking about the biggest stories of the coming weekend). Thursday Night Throwdown appears on Thursday's, while Storylines appears on Monday or Tuesday.

Week Twelve: Tuesday

2005-11-15T09:00:00.000-05:00

Under Pressure
Tommy Bowden, Clemson

Tommy won the Bowden Bowl, but this week's game may be even more important to Bowden. This week he takes on South Carolina in a very heated rivalry game. This is the same South Carolina that is 7-3 and stunned Florida a week ago to stay alive in the race for the SEC East title. This is the same South Carolina that is coached by Steve Spurrier. This is the same South Carolina that has been plastered by Clemson the last three years. Bowden and the Clemson faithful do not want South Carolina to pass them. It's debatable whether or not they have already, but this week will show just how far South Carolina has come. For Bowden, it is critical to come up with a win over the Tigers archrival so that he can keep the fire off of him.

Marcus Vick, Virginia Tech

Virginia Tech has gone on slides late in the season several times in recent years. This year's team could go on a similar slide. Sitting at 8-1 with games against Virginia and North Carolina left, there is no such thing as a sure thing. The Hokies quarterback looked absolutely awful against Miami in their last game. Was it a one game thing? Or has the traditional late season slide begun. If Vick and the Hokies struggle in this game, many Virginia Tech fans will be very upset about another end of the season slide. This game is critical for Vick to continue on the upward progression that he has shown for most of the year.

College Gameday Site
East Lansing, Michigan

In an interesting turn of events, the gang decided to go to East Lansing this week for the Penn State-Michigan State game. There are three games between ranked teams, and yet they chose this one. That is because Penn State wraps up a BCS bid with a win. If they lose, then the winner of the Michigan-Ohio State game gets the Big Ten's automatic bid. Michigan State (at 5-5) is gunning for a bowl game with a win. The Fresno State-USC game wasn't on the ESPN family of networks (it's on FSN) and it came on so late at night, that they did not want to go to that game. The Alabama-Auburn game is not on the ESPN family, and the winner needs LSU to lose to get to the BCS. There is a chance that an Alabama win would get them to the BCS as an at-large team, however it is clear that the one game that will have ramifications on who goes to the BCS is the Penn State-Michigan State game. It's a big game.

Thoughts on the Rankings

The odd computer quirk of the week is that Michigan, who has three losses including one to Notre Dame, is ranked ahead of the Irish, who have two losses, in the computer rankings. The Irish have moved up the rankings quite successfully, but there still seems to be a "computer bias" against the Irish.

The good news from the computers this week is that USC and Texas are number one and number two in all the computers now. Texas is ranked ahead of USC in all but one, but there is no longer any controversy coming from any of the computers on who should be playing for the national title. That is truly good news.

An e-mailer pointed out this fact to me last week. Every SEC team is ranked higher in the human polls than in the computer polls. Every Big Ten team is ranked higher in the computer polls than in the human polls. Does this mean that we are all underranking Big Ten teams and overranking SEC teams? Does it mean that computers don't have the good fortune of watching the games? Does it mean that things can be interpreted many different ways? It is, at the very least, food for thought.

Fresno State is getting hammered by the computers. They are ranked only by two computers, and then they are fifteen and eighteen. My bet is that they will move up in the computer rankings just for playing USC this Saturday night.
My Rankings

The rankings still are getting shaken up every single week. The fact that things are still changing so rapidly is proof of just how unstable these rankings are. More on the closeness of the ranked teams in a minute. But first, the rankings. Last week's ranking is in parentheses.

1. USC 10-0 (1)
2. Texas 10-0 (2)
3. Miami, FL 8-1 (4)
4. LSU 8-1 (6)
5. Penn State 9-1 (5)
6. Alabama 9-1 (3)
7. Virginia Tech 8-1 (8)
8. Ohio State 8-2 (11)
9. Notre Dame 7-2 (9)
10. Oregon 9-1 (7)
11. UCLA 9-1 (12)
12. Auburn 8-2 (15)
13. Georgia 7-2 (10)
14. Fresno State 8-1 (18)
15. West Virginia 8-1 (17)
16. South Carolina 7-3 (--)
17. Florida 7-3 (14)
18. TCU 10-1 (--)
19. Florida State 7-3 (13)
20. Minnesota 7-3 (--)
21. Michigan 7-3 (21)
22. Oklahoma 6-3 (25)
23. Louisville 7-2 (--)
24. Iowa State 7-3 (--)
25. Boston College 7-3 (24)

Dropped Out: Texas Tech 8-2 (16), Wisconsin 8-3 (20), Colorado 7-3 (22), Georgia Tech 6-3 (23)
Texas Tech's humbling loss to Oklahoma State knocks them badly. They now have lost to Texas and Oklahoma State, and their best win is over a 6-4 Nebraska team. It is very tough (other than their record) to find a reason to rank them. We'll know a lot more about them after they play Oklahoma this week. The Badgers dropped out after a loss to Iowa. This is really just a pretty good team. Colorado drops out after a loss to Iowa State. The Buffaloes still might be worthy of a Top 25 spot. We'll see how they do against Nebraska in two weeks. Georgia Tech lost to Virginia. It wasn't a bad loss. If they put on a good show against Miami this week, they may return.

Biggest drop by a team still in the rankings: 6- Florida State. It is possible that Florida State does not belong in the rankings at all. There is a chance that after this week's games, and the Seminoles are off this week, that they will drop even more. They still have that quality win over Miami, but it is getting more and more distant. They better put on a good show against Florida or else that ACC Championship Game could include an unranked team.

Smallest drop by a team that lost: 3- Alabama, Georgia, Florida. The three losers of the SEC battles last week dropped three spots each. Alabama didn't drop far because it was a close loss to a team ranked in the Top Five. Georgia didn't drop far because they were one play away from beating a very good Auburn team, and I felt like I might have punished them too much for losing to Florida when Shockley was out. Florida didn't drop far...and maybe they should have dropped further. Their small drop has more to do with trying to figure out who belongs ahead of them.

Bigget drop by a team that won: 3- Oregon. The Ducks dropped three spots because I think I had them overranked last week and they struggled by Washington State. I believe the Ducks would get beat by Notre Dame, Ohio State, and Virginia Tech. It would be very close, though.

Biggest jump by a team that was in my rankings last week: 4- Fresno State. The Bulldogs jumped because of their impressive win over Boise State. Keep this in mind. They beat Boise State, a team that came in with all the confidence in the world because they had beaten them four straight times, at home, without forcing a ton of turnovers in similar fashion to the way that Georgia beat Boise State. Boise even scored in the first minute of the game, putting a ton of pressure on Fresno right off the bat...and the Bulldogs responded. This is a much better team than they get credit for.

How close are these teams? There is a tightness at the top. USC and Texas are basically interchangeable. I could put them at co-#1, but decided against it at the last minute. The next four teams are all very close as well, with Miami's win over Virginia Tech and LSU's over Alabama providing the little bit of space that there is. Alabama is ahead of Virginia Tech because in their big game against one of these teams, they lost in overtime, while the Hokies were beat down. The next three teams (Ohio State, Notre Dame, and Oregon) are all very close as well. Notre Dame has not played a game where I was very impressed with them since the USC game. Their performance against USC was more impressive than Oregon's. Ohio State has lost to two Top Five teams and has been more impressive recently than Notre Dame, pushing them ahead of the Irish. The next five teams are all very close as well. The rest of the pack are all very very close. Minnesota is ahead of Michigan only because of the Gophers win over the Wolverines. This is a very tight bottom ten spots of the rankings.

Is Texas like Oklahoma? I hear from USC fans all the time about how Texas is just like Oklahoma from last year and they will beat the Longhorns just as badly in the Rose Bowl as they beat the Sooners last year. Now, maybe the Trojans will beat the Longhorns just as badly. However, the Sooners had looked very vulnerable against both Texas A&M and Oklahoma State by this point in the season. Where is the game where Texas has looked vulnerable like Oklahoma did? It doesn't exist. This Texas team has been blowing through teams this year. The only close game they have played was against Ohio State. That was very similar to USC's close call against the Irish. If anything USC has looked more like Oklahoma from last year, struggling against Arizona State. The Trojans have what is being called the best offense ever, just like Oklahoma was being called last year. That being said, I don't think that USC is like Oklahoma '04 and going to be exposed in the national championship game.

Maybe the Longhorns will struggle in the Big Twelve Championship Game or against Texas A&M. However, until they do, it isn't fair to be comparing Oklahoma '04 to Texas '05.

Week Twelve: Monday

2005-11-14T09:00:00.000-05:00

Weekend in Review

Game of the Week
LSU 16, Alabama 13 (OT)

It wasn't always the prettiest game on the planet, but the game that was billed as the Game of the Week heading into the weekend certainly lived up to it. The Tide jumped out to a 10-0 halftime lead over LSU, and everything appeared to be heading Alabama's way. But in the second half, JaMarcus Russell started playing better and lead the Tigers back to tie it at ten. The Tide offense could do virtually nothing in the second half, and as time ticked down, Alabama was being forced closer and closer to their own endzone and LSU was getting closer and closer with each exchange of punts. Russell then found Dwayne Bowe from 11 yards out in the overtime to come up with the win. The defenses dominated the fourth quarter, but the game was entertaining, and highly intense. The Tigers now control their own destiny in the SEC West with game against Ole Miss and Arkansas remaning.

Upset of the Week
Oklahoma State 24, Texas Tech 17

Did anyone in their right mind really see this one coming? The Red Raiders were 8-1 and were building a resume for a BCS at-large bowl bid, which they probably were not going to get anyway. Yes, the Cowboys played well against Texas a couple of weeks ago, but this defense has been like paper and the Red Raiders offense kills defenses like that. Not so. The Cowboys jumped out to a 17-0 lead before Texas Tech charged back to tie the game at 17. After a very intense fourth quarter of back and forth, Al Pena ran the ball in from a yard away to give the Cowboys the dramatic upset. Absolutely amazing. This may go down as the Upset of the Year so far.

Player of the Week
Charlie Whitehurst, Clemson

Whitehurst has been battling the injury bug, but there was no way he was going to miss his last chance to play Florida State. It was a game in which the Tigers had everything to play for (a bowl game) and Florida State had nothing to play for. The two teams played like it. Whitehurst sparked the Tigers completing 21 of 32 passes for 269 yards and three touchdowns. His numbers don't really tell the whole story, as Clemson truly dominated most of this game, and Whitehurst was the clear leader of the team. The 35-14 win may be the most important win for Clemson yet, as they are really becoming a serious rival of Florida State's. The 'Noles are in danger, if they lose to Florida in two weeks and/or in the ACC Championship Game, of not even being ranked heading into their bowl game. Given that they were in the Top Ten just last week, this is very disappointing.

Stat of the Week
42 and counting.

Ho hum. Another year, another Notre Dame win over Navy. That makes it 42 in a row, which is an incredible stat. No other rivalry has ever gone that long. With Fresno State ending their streak to Boise State, Texas beating Oklahoma, Florida State beating Miami, and even Kansas beating Nebraska, this seemed like the year for streaks to die. Even Boston and the White Sox have won the World Series in the last thirteen months. Yet, this streak never dies. It never goes away. It just keeps going and going and going and going....

Play of the Week
Steve Paris' 66 yard fumble return.

Iowa State was leading Colorado 16-13 with time running down in the third quarter. Steve Paris picked up the Lawrence Vickers fumble, which had been forced by Tim Dobbins, and ran it 66 yards for a touchdown. It was a huge play that turned the momentum of the game completely in Iowa State's favor. What is remarkable is that Colorado found a way to bounce back at all. But they did. At least until...

Turnover of the Week
Brent Curvey's 66 yard interception return.

Joel Klatt dropped back to throw a screen pass with under two minutes to play and his Buffaloes trailing Iowa State 23-16. He threw the ball, and Curvey stepped in front of it and returned the interception 66 yards for a touchdown. The interception sealed the game for Iowa State and the touchdown put the icing on the cake. As everybody knows by now, one of my favorite plays is watching the big defensive lineman rumble down the field for a touchdown. That's what happened on this play. It was a huge win for Iowa State, as they keep their hopes for a Big Twelve North title alive. A Nebraska upset of Colorado on the Friday after Thanksgiving will give the Big Twelve North title to Iowa State. A Colorado win in that game gives the Buffaloes the title.

Key First Half Moment of the Week
A.J. Hawk's touchdown.

A.J. Hawk and the Ohio State Buckeyes lead Northwestern 14-7 with the second quarter just getting underway. The Wildcats were punting, and the punt was blocked by the Buckeyes. A.J. Hawk, playing in his last game in Columbus, returned the blocked punt eight yards for a touchdown that put Ohio State up 21-7, and effectively put the game away. Northwestern never fully recovered from the jolt.

Moment of the Week
Devin Aromashodu's 62 yard catch.

It was fourth down and everything hung in the balance for the Auburn Tigers. They trailed Georgia 30-28. But on this fourth down play, Brandon Cox found Aromashodu and he scrambled down the sideline 62 yards. The ball got poked out from behind and rolled into the endzone, but the Tigers recovered it. Since a ball cannot be fumbled forward on a fourth down, the ball was spotted back at the three yard line, which meant that the Tigers got to run some clock and then kick the game winning field goal to win, 31-30. Why Georgia didn't let Auburn score and get their offense, which had been explosive all night, back onto the field is amazing. Coaches need to learn that sometimes late in games, that letting the other team score is the best strategy.

Week Eleven: Friday

2005-11-11T09:00:00.000-05:00

Weekend Stars
Thoughts on who the stars of the weekend will be.

Game of the Week- LSU at Alabama- It is hard to deny how big this game is. The winner will be in the drivers seat of the SEC West race and ranked in the Top Five. The loser will fall down the bowl pecking order. These are two very good teams. They both play very good defense. LSU has more offensive firepower, but the LSU secondary is a question mark. However, without Tyrone Prothro to toss the ball to, Brodie Croyle and the Tide offense has struggled. This ought to be a spectacular game. If you love defensive slugfests, watch this game.

Upset Special-Florida State at Clemson- The Bowden Bowl may have lost some of its luster in recent years, but this game smells like a potential upset. Clemson has played better at home this year, taking Miami to triple overtime. Florida State has nothing to play for. They have already locked up the ACC Atlantic Division title, and last week's loss to North Carolina State eliminated them from the national championship race and probably from getting an at-large bid to a BCS bowl game. Clemson is still trying to get bowl eligible. So, Florida State has nothing to play for. Clemson has a lot to play for. Clemson is a pretty good team that hasn't played up to their level at all times this year. Florida State is too. This game may not end in a Clemson win, but there are certainly reasons to believe it might.

Team of the Week-UCLA Bruins- You want to see a team awakened from their slumber? Watch the Bruins this weekend. They should come out and play their most complete game since beating Oklahoma in September this weekend. The Bruins loss last week against Arizona did not eliminate them from the national title picture. If they can beat USC on December 3, they would shoot up the rankings. They will win the Pac Ten with a win that day, as long as they win this one. I expect to see a fired up Maurice Drew and a fired up UCLA team beat Arizona State this weekend. Of course, I wouldn't be completely shocked to see UCLA lay an egg and get killed by the Sun Devils, but either way, I expect this game to end in a blowout.

Players of the Week-
1) Reggie Bush, USC- Maurice Drew exploded against California. Does anyone else think that does not bode well for the Bears as they try to slow down Bush?
2) DeMeco Ryans, Alabama- The Tide linebacker should have a huge game against LSU. The Alabama defense is very strong, and he is the leader of it. He ought to help slow down the LSU offense.
3) D.J. Shockley, Georgia- Does anyone know how important Shockley is to the Dawgs? We'll all know more after this weekend in his first game back from an injury.
4) Maurice Drew, UCLA- Reggie Bush had a big game against the Sun Devils. Drew has got an opportunity to get right back into the Heisman Trophy race with a big game in this one.
5) Cody Hodges, Texas Tech- Oklahoma State's defense hasn't proven to be a match for many teams this season. Hodges ought to put up huge numbers against the Cowboys.

One Liners
Quick preview of tonight's game.

Rutgers at Louisville (8:00 ESPN2)- Louisville's offense always seems to roll at home. For Rutgers, they are already bowl eligible, but they would love to pull off an upset to send themselves flying up the bowl pecking order. They are a quality team, but they will need to do a lot to control Brian Brohm and the Cardinals offense.

Thursday in Review
Very quick recap of last night's game.

Fresno State 27, Boise State 7- The game was not as close as the score indicated. When Boise scored on their second play from scrimmage, every Fresno fan had to be holding their breath and trying not to think, "Here we go again." Fresno responded with a vengeance. They played a very good game, and proved that they may just be the most underrated team in the country.

Week Eleven: Thursday

2005-11-10T09:00:00.000-05:00

Viewer's Guide

Which games should you watch this weekend? What games should you be keeping your eyes on during each time period? We've got it all worked out for you.The day is divided into five parts. Some are more unequal than others due to the start time of the games. All times are Eastern.

The time periods are early games (start time before 2:00), afternoon (start time from 2:15-5:00), late afternoon (start time from 5:15-7:15), evening (start time from 7:30-9:45), and late night (start time after 10:00). The games are ranked by time period and give you a couple of reasons to watch each game, whether it is questions that need to be answered or something else altogether. The games are the games listed on CollegeFootballNews.com as the television games for this weekend. Only Saturday games are included.

Let's get it started!

Early Games

1. Florida at South Carolina (12:30 JP/Gameplan)- 1) Florida wins the East with a win and a Georgia loss to either Auburn or Kentucky. South Carolina finishes second in the East with a win. 2) Chris Leak and the Gators offense has not been great this year, and the Gamecocks defense has been pretty good. Can Leak put enough points on the board to beat the Gamecocks? 3) Isn't there some small storyline in this game? Something about some coach coaching against his former team? Something about the hot up and coming coach coaching against a legend that he is in the shadow of? There might be. More research is necessary on this...

2. Northwestern at Ohio State (12:00 ABC/Gameplan)- 1) Interestingly, there is still a sliver of a chance that Northwestern can claim the Big Ten title. Ohio State needs to win out and have Penn State lose to Michigan State for them to win it. Their chances are much more realistic. 2) Brett Basanez and that Wildcat offense is explosive. It will be A.J. Hawk and the Ohio State defenses job to hold them down. 3) Ted Ginn Jr. has shown why he was considered a Heisman Trophy contender at the start of the year in the last couple of games. He is as exciting as any player in the country.

3. Florida State at Clemson (12:00 ESPN)- 1) It's the Bowden Bowl! Papa Bowden goes up against Sonny Bowden in a game that Sonny needs to have to make sure he holds onto his job. 2) Clemson needs just one more win to become bowl eligible. Tiger fans definitely would like to see it happen against Florida State. 3) Drew Weatherford took a giant leap backwards last week against North Carolina State. Can he put it behind him this week against the Tigers?

4. Michigan State at Minnesota (12:00 Gameplan)- 1) You know you want to see Drew Stanton go up against Laurence Maroney. Two trendy picks for the Heisman at different points in the year go up against each other in this battle. 2) The Spartans rarely play defense. The Gophers play defense only slightly more often. This game should be quite the high scoring affair. 3) The Spartans still need one more win to become bowl eligible. The Gophers are already bowl eligible, but another win certainly wouldn't hurt their cause any for a decent bowl.

5. Texas A&M at Oklahoma (12:00 ABC/Gameplan)- 1) Both teams need one more win to become bowl eligible. For the Aggies, with Texas their only game after this one, they would certainly like to get it out of the way now. For Oklahoma, Texas Tech and Oklahoma State remain, so one win against one of these three teams seems probable. However, it's always better to go ahead and take care of business when you have the chance. 2) Reggie McNeal, despite the team's recent struggles, has still been playing pretty well. Oklahoma's defense has been coming on as of late, so this could be a stiff challenge for McNeal. 3) Adrian Peterson, now that he is back and reasonably healthy, has been eating up yards. Against the sieve that is the Aggies defense, he should run for huge yards.

6. Maryland at North Carolina (JP/Gameplan)- 1) Both teams are 4-4. The loser is really going to have trouble getting to a bowl game. 2) Sam Hollenbach will be back at quarterback for the Terps. They need him to rescue their bowl hopes. 3) Other than the bruising they took from Louisville, North Carolina has played pretty well this year. Last week's win over Boston College showed that this team, playing perhaps the most difficult schedule in the country, is still a pretty darn good team.

7. Memphis at Tennessee (2:00 Gameplan)- 1) Do you want to go to a bowl game? For the Vols, they have to win their final three games to get to a bowl. For the Tigers, they have to win two of their last three to get there. 2) DeAngelo Williams is the nation's leading rusher. Going up against a tough Vols defense should give the country a good feel for just how good he is. 3) The Vols offense clicked off 21 points last week, which is their third highest output of the season. They need to keep the ball rolling against a pretty good Memphis defense.

8. Navy at Notre Dame (1:00 NBC)- 1) Notre Dame has beaten Navy 41 straight times, an all time record for most consecutive wins over one opponent. One of these years, Navy is going to jump up and bite the Irish. 2) The Irish need to hold on to their #11 spot in the BCS rankings if they want to get to a BCS bowl game this year. Navy needs one more win to become bowl eligible. 3) Brady Quinn is having a great year and is receiving darkhorse consideration for the Heisman Trophy. He needs to put up huge numbers from here on out to have a chance.

9. Indiana at Michigan (12:00 ESPN2)- 1) Michigan is still alive for the Big Ten title. Wins these next two weeks, a Wisconsin loss, and a Penn State loss would give it to them. The Hoosiers must win their last two games to get to a bowl game. 2) Michigan's defense has been playing better. Blake Powers hasn't been playing quite as well for the Hoosiers. Still, it should be interesting to see how Powers does against this defense. 3) Chad Henne has been playing much better for the Wolverines, and should put up big numbers against a lousy Indiana defense.

10. Massachusetts at Army (12:00 ESPNU)- 1) Army has won two straight, and is looking at possibly having won four in a row heading into the Navy game if they can win this one and the Arkansas State game next week. Maybe Bobby Ross' team really has turned the corner. 2) UMass is one of the better teams in Division 1-AA, so the Black Knights better not overlook them. 3) Zac Dahman is an excellent quarterback that has excelled the last two years.

Afternoon

1. LSU at Alabama (3:30 CBS)- 1) It's this week's version of Virginia Tech-Miami. A highly regarded one loss team goes on the road to battle the third ranked team in the BCS. This one ought to be more entertaining than last week's game. Not to mention that the winner of this game will be in the lead in the SEC West. 2) Alabama has only scored one offensive touchdown in their last three SEC games. LSU's defense has been steadily improving this season. Can the Tide, behind Brodie Croyle and Ken Darby, put some points on the board? 3) Even though they've only scored one offensive touchdown in their last three SEC games, the Tide is still winning because of the strength of their defense. JaMarcus Russell and the rest of the LSU offense will have to be very sharp to put points on the board against these guys.

2. USC at California (3:30 ABC/Gameplan)- 1) The Trojans last loss was to Cal back in 2003. That game was at Cal. This has been the closest thing to a rivalry game that the Trojans have had in recent years with Notre Dame being down and all. This has been the team that has come the closest to ending their dreams consistently. One more time? 2) Joe Ayoob has been downright bad at times for the Cal offense. The USC defense has struggled at times to stop the pass. This match-up will determine if the Bears have a chance or not. 3) There may not be a game this year with more talent on display at running back. Everyone knows about Reggie Bush and LenDale White, but some people (they have to be out there) may not know about Marshawn Lynch and Justin Forsett. These two duos in the backfield squaring off...that alone makes this game worth watching.

3. Kansas at Texas (3:30 ABC/Gameplan)- 1) That's the number one rushing defense in the country looking to try to contain Texas. The Jayhawks defense is very good. They have Charles Gordon in the secondary and the best run defense in the country. They've got the talent on defense to make this one interesting. 2) Kansas lead Texas by double digits late in their game last year before losing. 3) Vince Young continues to make his push at the Heisman Trophy. If he has a big game against this defense, he should really help his cause.

4. Iowa at Wisconsin (3:30 ESPN)- 1) In the preseason, it was supposed to be Iowa trying to stay in the Big Ten title race and the Badgers trying to get to a bowl game. Things are reversed. The Hawkeyes are trying to get to a bowl game, while the Badgers still have a shot at tying for the Big Ten title. 2) Drew Tate and the Iowa offense could light up the Badgers defense, which has struggled badly at times this year. 3) Brian Calhoun had a bad week last week against Penn State, but he is one of the better running backs in the country. He'll need to have a big game against a pretty good Hawkeyes defense.

5. Miami at Wake Forest (3:30 ABC/Gameplan)- 1) It's Wake Forest's last game of the season. So this is my last chance to get the names Chris Barclay and Micah Andrews into the nation's consciousness. Trust me. This Wake Forest rushing attack is very very good. 2) Miami is battling it out for the third spot in the BCS, or first in line just in case Texas or USC lose. They need to keep on winning, and winning impressively, to get there. 3) Wake is a very dangerous team, but Kyle Wright and the Hurricanes showed what they are capable of last week against Virginia Tech. The defense shut the Hokies down, and the Hurricanes offense did just enough.

6. Georgia Tech at Virginia (3:30 ABC/Gameplan)- 1) On a technicality, both teams are still alive for the ACC Coastal Division title. Virginia still has games with Miami and Virginia Tech after this one, while Georgia Tech has a key showdown with Miami coming up. Virginia must win to become bowl eligible. 2) Reggie Ball is about as inconsistent as they come at quarterback. Going up against a pretty good Virginia defense could make him look pretty bad. 3) Marques Hagans isn't exactly the most consistent quarterback. Going up against the Yellow Jackets tough defense could make him look pretty bad. In other words, look for a defensive battle with very few points being scored.

7. UCF at UAB (4:00 CSTV)- 1) UAB needs two more wins to become bowl eligible. UCF needs to keep on winning if they are going to win the CUSA East. They need a Southern Miss loss somewhere along the way as well. 2) Darrell Hackney is one of the most underrated quarterbacks in the country. Watch him play. He's an exciting football player. 3) Steven Moffett has played with confidence and poise this year. He continues to look very good for the Golden Knights.

8. San Diego State at Colorado State (3:00 Gameplan)- 1) The Rams need one more win to become bowl eligible. The Aztecs upset Utah a couple of weeks ago, and look to do it again. 2) Justin Holland is a very underrappreciated quarterback. His top target, David Anderson, is largely an unknown around the country, but he is one of the top receivers in the conference. 3) Kevin O'Connell has been playing a little bit better lately at quarterback. Two weeks ago, when the Aztecs lost by three to TCU, O'Connell had a good game, both throwing and running the ball.

9. Louisiana Tech at Idaho (5:00 Gameplan)- 1) The Bulldogs need one win in their final three games to become bowl eligible. They've still got a shot at winning the WAC with Boise State and Fresno State ahead on the schedule. 2) Matt Kubik may not be exploding, but he is still a pretty good quarterback for the Bulldogs. 3) The last time Idaho played (and that one was on Gameplan as well), the Vandals were pulling out a 38-37 thriller in overtime against New Mexico State. That pile in the back of the endzone after the two point conversion is one of the more memorable moments of the season to date of any game I've watched. Can they carry that confidence over into this game?

Late Afternoon

1. Colorado at Iowa State (7:00 FSN)- 1) Colorado wraps up the Big Twelve North with a win. Iowa State keeps their title hopes alive with a win. The Cyclones must win out and hope that Colorado loses to Nebraska on the Friday after Thanksgiving. 2) Joel Klatt has been playing well as the Buffaloes quarterback. Now, the Cyclones defense have been eating people up lately, so Klatt may find it tough going this weekend. 3) Stevie Hicks is finally healthy again. Todd Blythe is making plays. Bret Meyer is settling in at quarterback. The Buffaloes defense has been solid, but this is a tough task to try to slow down this hot Iowa State offense.

2. Arizona State at UCLA (7:00 ABC/Gameplan)- 1) Bruins take on Arizona...take two! This was supposed to be the game that gave the Bruins trouble. If Arizona can beat the Bruins 52-14, and this was supposed to be the tougher of the two games, what does that mean will happen this week? 2) The Sun Devils need just one win to become bowl eligible. It doesn't matter if it comes this weekend against UCLA or in two weeks against Arizona. 3) The Bruins have Drew Olson, Maurice Drew, and one of the best offenses in the Pac Ten. They got slowed down last week by Arizona. Can they come back this week against ASU?

3. North Carolina State at Boston College (7:15 ESPN2)- 1) The Wolfpack need two wins to become bowl eligible. After last weekend's upset of Florida State, they feel that they should surely be able to win at Boston College. 2) Mathias Kiwanuka will be looking to keep his team from losing three straight. A loss here suddenly would send the Eagles way down on the bowl pecking order. 3) Andre Brown and Toney Baker are both very good backs for the Wolfpack offense. They will be challenged by a good Boston College defense.

4. New Mexico at Utah (6:30 Gameplan)- 1) The winner of this game is bowl eligible. While that wasn't either teams goal heading into the season, it is how things are for the Utes and Lobos. 2) DonTrell Moore is one of the more underrated backs in the country. He could have a big day against the Utes defense. 3) Brian Johnson has been playing better as of late for the Utes as the quarterback. Quinton Ganther may be the star of the offense, but the development of Johnson is the key to this team's continued success.

5. BYU at Wyoming (6:00 Gameplan)- 1) The Cougars need one win to become bowl eligible, while the Cowboys need two. Again, not what these teams had in mind to start the season, but it will have to do. 2) Corey Bramlett needs to get going to snap this Cowboys team out of their four game losing streak. 3) John Beck is really getting on a roll as the Cougars quarterback. The Cougars offense has scored 117 points the last two weeks combined, a stunning 58.5 average.

6. Troy at Arkansas State (7:00 ESPNU)- 1) Both teams are 3-2 in Sun Belt play and sit just one half game behind Louisiana-Monroe in the conference race. Both have already lost to Monroe, so another conference loss would absolutely kill any chances of winning the conference. 2) Antonio Warren and Shermar Bracey both average over 7.0 yards per carry for the Indians. 3) Carl Meadows has been very average at quarterback for the Trojans. They would love to see him play a more consistent game against an inconsistent Arkansas State defense.

7. Florida International at Louisiana-Lafayette (7:00 Gameplan)- 1) FIU upset Louisiana-Monroe last week to throw the conference race up for grabs. ULL beat North Texas to put themselves in control of their own destiny in the Sun Belt. 2) Josh Padrick is a pretty good quarterback for the Panthers. 3) Jerry Babb has been getting the job done for the Ragin' Cajuns. With two weeks off after this before a potential Sun Belt Championship Game against Louisiana-Monroe, ULL needs a solid performance and a win.
Evening

1. Auburn at Georgia (7:45 ESPN)- 1) It is the South's oldest rivalry. That alone makes this one of the must see games of the weekend. 2) Georgia can clinch the East with a Florida loss and a win in this one. With Kentucky next week, all the Dawgs really need is just to win this one, apparently. Auburn can win the West by winning out and seeing LSU lose once somewhere along the way. 3) D.J. Shockley will be back from injury. How effective will he be? Brandon Cox hasn't been very good in either of the Tigers big games so far this year. How effective will he be? The quarterback position will play a large role in this one, which may be surprising given how good the running backs and defenses are on these teams.

Late Night

1. Oregon at Washington State (10:15 FSN)- 1) Welcome to a classic trap game for the Oregon Ducks. Beating Cal last week was a huge win, and their rivalry game with Oregon State is coming up, and a better than their record would indicate Washington State team sits in between. 2) Who will it be this week for the Ducks? Brady Leaf or Dennis Dixon? Leaf saved them last week against Cal. Someone needs to step up in Kellen Clemens absence. With a possible BCS bowl bid on the line, this one is huge. 3) The Cougars have the Pac Ten's leading rusher in Jerome Harrison. Jason Hill may be the most underrated wide receiver in the Pac Ten. They've got the offensive playmakers to keep this one close.

2. Utah State at Hawaii (11:05 Gameplan)- 1) Hawaii has three home games left, which means that winning out is a distinct possibility, which means they could get to 6-6 and a possible bowl game. 2) Colt Brennan has been a pretty good fit for the Warriors at the quarterback position. 3) Leon Jackson III has lead the Aggies in both rushing and passing so far this year. He is the only thing that resembles offense for this team. He will have to put up big numbers if they are going to hang with the Warriors strong offense.

ONE LINERS
Quick preview of tonight's game.

Boise State at Fresno State (8:00 ESPN)- This may be the most anticipated Thursday night game of the year. This is for the WAC title, and an impressive show by Fresno State may put them in a position of really believing that they can hang with USC. Boise State has a 31 game conference winning streak. Fresno State hasn't beaten them the last four years. This will be a whole lot of fun.

WEDNESDAY IN REVIEW
Very quick recap of last night's game.

West Virginia 45, Cincinatti 0- The Mountaineers continue to roll along. They are the class of the Big East at this point. Now, they have two weeks to get ready for Pittsburgh and then (win or lose against the Panthers) will be playing at South Florida with the Big East title on the line. If they beat Pitt, and USF comes up with one more loss, then the Mountaineers will already have the title clinched, but they will be playing to make the Big East look better. Steve Slatton and the rest of this WVU team is much better than they are generally given credit for.

Week Eleven: Wednesday

2005-11-09T09:00:00.000-05:00

Overreaction Wednesday
Getting a little bit crazy and having some knee jerk reactions to last weekend's games.

After watching California and UCLA be underwhelming last weekend, it becomes more clear that Fresno State could be the toughest game left on USC's schedule. For this to be true, it is absolutely critical that the Bulldogs take care of business on Thursday night against Boise State. They can not show any weakness right before the USC game. On a good note for the Bulldogs, a win over Boise would be huge for the program as well. Since the game is on Thursday night, they will have time to celebrate and then begin to focus on the Trojans.

The key game in the SEC title race (in both divisions) is Georgia-Auburn this Saturday. If Georgia wins, they likely win the East. If Auburn wins, it makes next weekend's Iron Bowl even bigger. Regardless of who wins the LSU-Alabama game, both Alabama and Auburn will enter the game with SEC title aspirations as long as Aubun wins. So excuse me if that is the game that I am most focused on this weekend, even though it isn't as big as the other SEC battle.

Should we count out Iowa State? I haven't counted them out yet. They are playing as well as any team in the Big Twelve, and if they can beat Colorado this weekend, it will mean that the Nebraska-Colorado game will determine the Big Twelve North Champ (assuming that Iowa State wins at Kansas, which may not be a safe assumption). Now, should anyone count on Nebraska winning a game that matters? Of course not. But it would be foolish to count out the Cyclones quite yet. If Colorado beats them this Saturday, then the race is over, though.

I'm not really supposed to cheer for any teams, but...I may find myself cheering for USF the next three weeks against Syracuse, Cincinnati and Connecticut. Why? Because I want that West Virginia-USF game on December 3 (Championship Saturday) to be for the Big East title. The only way it would be if USF loses a game, would be if WVU loses one as well. Then tiebreakers with numerous teams could come into play. However, West Virginia's visit to South Florida could be a Big East Championship Game, much like Virginia Tech at Miami was the ACC Championship Game last year. USF's win over Rutgers was their biggest remaining hurdle before that game. The Bulls are looking more and more like the only team (other than Louisville) that can truly contend with West Virginia out of the Big East. The Backyard Brawl between Pitt and West Virginia should be highly entertaining though. Don't be shocked if Pitt, not USF, hands WVU their first loss of the Big East season. Do be shocked if Cincinnati does tonight.

Remember that some of these things are gross overreactions to the way teams played this weekend. These are not necessarily straight predictions, but rather thoughts that many may not consider that are very distinct possibilities.

News & Notes

Jim Hofher, Buffalo's head coach, has been fired. He will be leaving at the end of the season. The Bulls typically struggle every year, and they needed a change to try to turn things around. That's what Hofher was supposed to do, but he could never quite get it done.

D.J Shockley is prepared to play this weekend as Georgia takes on Auburn. A win likely sends the Dawgs to the SEC Championship Game. This is a huge game for them, and Shockley's health is a key to their success.

Rich Brooks will return for Kentucky as their head coach next year. This is interesting news. Brooks has been on the hot seat seemingly since the day he stepped foot on campus, and many seemed to believe that this was finally the year that he would not be able to survive. Yet he has. The Wildcats have been on probation, so winning has been difficult, but the disappointing performances against teams such as Idaho State and Ohio have left Kentucky fans wanting more. They won't be getting more until at least the end of next year.

Michael Bush, Louisville's star running back, is questionable for their game against Rutgers this Saturday. He has a sprained foot. The game is a key game in the race for second in the Big East. With both Rutgers and Louisville already having lost to current second place team, South Florida, the game could have more bearing on who finishes third in the conference. Still, with the logjam of two loss teams in the Big East, one of these teams will break out, and Louisville could certainly use the services of their best player.

Quotables

Sylvester Croom, Mississippi State's head coach: "I didn't think they (Alabama) played with as much class as Alabama teams usually do. All that bumping and some of the other little things they did between plays … I wasn't impressed with that at all...We've played three or four teams that are better from a talent standpoint, but they know how to get it done."

Ralph Friedgen, Maryland's head coach: "I don't think he's (starting QB Sam Hollenbach) like he was before he got hurt, but I think he's back to being able to play at full capacity, let's put it that way. Obviously we're concerned at how he holds up, but I'm hoping he'll be able to run the whole thing."

Bill Callahan, Nebraska's head coach: "Just to start with to begin this media conference, I just want to point out that we are not at all happy about where we are, what has transpired, what has taken place over the weekend. This staff, our players, our program are disappointed – bitterly disappointed about what occurred. We’re going to do everything we can this weekend to rectify it. Several situations have been addressed during the course of the weekend, and all I can tell you is that we will work hard. We are working hard to correct the error in our game. It is not to my standard, and despite what anybody else thinks out there, it’s not my standard the way we are existing right now as a program. We’re very disappointed. We’re very disappointed in terms of assignment football, very disappointed in terms of how our players have come out and put the effort into a game like we had this past weekend. We’re looking forward to this weekend to rectify the error in our game.”

Rant of the Week

Again, lots of good things to choose from for the Rant of the Week. Obviously, this was written before Saturday's games (as it references both Virginia Tech and UCLA being in the Top Five).

I think Notre Dame is a decent team, but they are not top 10 material, and what I took away from the ND-USC game was USC is not as good as everyone thinks. Lets face it, USC has not beat a good team this year, they have beaten plenty of avg. teams, but no good teams. Which leads me to my next prediction of USC losing by 14 in the NC if they play Texas or VTech (save this email, it will happen)...Back to USC. If this quote from the CFN site does not say everything about how badly everyone wants USC to be number 1 I do not know what does. “Computer this. USC took a potent Washington State team and blew it out like it was the Trojan third string. Any time you can crank out 745 yards of total offense and 55 points, you’re doing something right.” Have you looked at who Washington State has beat? They have not beat a team in the PAC10 (which ranks below the Big12 this year in my opinion). Washington St’s only wins come against #102 Idaho, #75 Nevada, and Grambling a IAA team. How does this validate how good USC is?UCLA has beat 1 ranked team (a team which will not be ranked at the end of the year) and everyone thinks they are great. Now do not get me wrong, they deserve to be in the 5th spot because they have not lost yet, but someone needs to step up and say they would get beat by every team in the top 10 and maybe the top 15.Here is the worst part of it all, USC will beat UCLA in a close game and this will validate USC as being the top team and deserving of the #1 spot, all by beating an undefeated team which has beaten 1 ranked team??? Does anyone else share my confusion?

--Ben Geiser

Do I agree with this? Of course not. I believe the Big Twelve is below the Pac Ten and I believe that beating Washington State, who had been playing every Pac Ten team close, by such a wide margin did say that USC was a pretty darn good team. Just like Texas beating an OK Baylor team so badly tells us that Texas is pretty darn good. When teams beat the teams they are supposed to beat convincingly, that is the sign of a good team. Still, I try to keep other viewpoints out there so that people can see them. This is Ben's take on things.

Keep those e-mails coming. I love getting your rants.

One Liners
A quick preview of tonight's game.

West Virginia at Cincinnati (7:30 ESPN2)- The Mountaineers continue their quest to win the Big East title and earn a BCS bowl bid. They have basically put away every team except for South Florida in the race for the title, since the Bulls are just one loss behind the Mountaineers and they still have a game to be played. They are at least two games up on every other team, including tonight's opponent. The Bearcats are 4-4 and holding onto hopes that they can find a way to a bowl game. A win in this one would be huge for that cause.
Review of Tuesday's games
A very quick recap of last nights game.

Southern Miss 27, Marshall 24 (OT)- The Golden Eagles lead a double digit lead slip away in the fourth quarter, but were able to win in overtime. They keep their dreams of a CUSA title alive. Dustin Almond and Larry Thomas both had pretty good games for the USM offense. Marshall needs to win out to avoid a losing season.

Week Eleven: Tuesday

2005-11-08T09:00:00.000-05:00

Under Pressure
Pat Hill, Fresno State

The Fresno State coach has done everything asked him in his time with the Bulldogs. They've gone toe-to-toe with the BCS big boys and won more than their fair share. They get to bowl games. They have success. There is just one thing missing in recent years, and that is a WAC title. That's because the Bulldogs haven't been able to find a way to beat the Boise State Broncos. Next week's game against USC could be huge for Fresno State, but most people don't expect them to win that one. This week's game against Boise State people expect the Bulldogs to win. That puts the pressure squarely on the shoulders of Hill and the Bulldogs to pull this one out on Thursday night.

Joe Ayoob, California

Aaron Rodgers had great success against USC. Now the pressure shifts to Ayoob to have that type of success. This is the game that Cal fans have been pointing to all year. With three losses already, the Bears desperately do not want to get another one. They were the last team to beat USC, and played them within an eyelash last year. There has been a lot of uproar about Ayoob's play in Berkeley. If he plays well in this game, it will help his confidence, silence the critics, and make him a hero. If he doesn't play well, then his job will come under fire, more than likely, in spring ball.

College Gameday Site
Tuscaloosa, Alabama

The SEC fans have raged this year about how few times College Gameday has come to an SEC game this season. Well, this will be the second time in three weeks that they are at an SEC game. LSU's visit to Alabama is a huge game in the SEC West title chase. The winner will be in the lead in the division. If LSU wins, they could still be tied with Alabama and Auburn, but they will have beaten both teams, which gives them the edge. If Alabama wins, they will be two games up on LSU and have the tiebreaker, and will still be one game up on Auburn (pending their result against Georgia) with a game with Auburn still to come. If Alabama wants to try to make up ground on Texas in the BCS, they need to win and look good doing it. With three tough games left on their schedule, they do have a shot to make up the ground if they can look impressive.

Thoughts on the Rankings

Before the Ohio State game, a Penn State fan e-mailed me and asked me if I thought that even with a loss if Penn State could get to the national championship game. I said there was no way. Now, while the Nittany Lions upset Ohio State that Saturday night and were beaten by Michigan a week later, there seems to be growing evidence that maybe the Nittany Lions do have a shot. They are number five in this week's BCS, mostly on the strength of the computers having them number three.

Notre Dame has moved into the Top Twelve, which means they seem to be in a position that all they have to do is win out and they will get to a BCS bowl game. Of course, they could still be hurt by their strength of schedule down the stretch, but the odds of them going to a BCS bowl have just gone up substantially.

Good news for the Big East! West Virginia is up to number fourteen in the BCS standings. This means that as long as they continue to win and move up at an appropriate rate, the Mountaineers could find themselves ranked around number ten by the time the BCS bowl games roll around. This means that the Big East will have met the requirements put before them for keeping their automatic bid. Of course, a loss to Cincinnati, Pittsburgh, or South Florida would end that. Plus, South Florida is still very much alive in the Big East race, as they control their own destiny too.

Alabama has the slimmest of leads on Miami for number three in the BCS. While this is totally unimportant at this point, it will be pretty important if either Texas or USC loses. Will the Harris Poll vote Miami number two in that situation? Imagine the uproar if an undefeated Alabama team gets left out of the national championship game in favor of any once beaten team. It seems unlikely given the strength of Alabama's schedule down the stretch. However, every year we wonder what new thing will happen that will be controversial about the BCS. This would be a new one.

My Rankings

The season is starting to sort teams out slowly but surely. Based on most of what I've seen, the Top Six teams are fairly consensus. After the Big Two, there is some intrigue over which of the next four should be ranked where exactly. The situation is still open for interpretation. That is for sure. The number in parentheses represents where the team was ranked last week.

1. USC 9-0 (1)
2. Texas 9-0 (2)
3. Alabama 9-0 (4)
4. Miami, FL 7-1 (8)
5. Penn State 9-1 (10)
6. LSU 7-1 (6)
7. Oregon 8-1 (13)
8. Virginia Tech 8-1 (3)
9. Notre Dame 6-2 (9)
10. Georgia 7-1 (11)
11. Ohio State 7-2 (12)
12. UCLA 8-1 (5)
13. Florida State 7-2 (7)
14. Florida 7-2 (14)
15. Auburn 7-2 (15)
16. Texas Tech 8-1 (18)
17. West Virginia 7-1 (19)
18. Fresno State 7-1 (21)
19. TCU 9-1 (23)
20. Wisconsin 8-2 (16)
21. Michigan 6-2 (22)
22. Colorado 7-2 (25)
23. Georgia Tech 6-2 (24)
24. Boston College 6-3 (17)
25. Oklahoma 5-3 (--)

Dropped out: California 6-3 (20)
The Bears lost at Oregon, which isn't that bad. The Bears still have a shot to prove themselves this week against USC. A win would throw them up the charts very quickly. This is still a pretty good football team that USC should not overlook.

Biggest drop by a team still in the rankings: 7- Boston College. The Eagles looked downright average in their loss to North Carolina. That was not a good show, and now they have lost back-to-back games. This team is still not a bad ACC team, but they are looking more average by the week. Until they find an offense that can move the ball effectively, they will continue to look very average.

Smallest drop by a team that lost: 4- Wisconsin. While the Badgers were beaten down 35-14 by Penn State, the facts are that Penn State is a very good football team, especially at home, and that the Badgers probably were overrated slightly at #16 last week. This really is probably right where they belong.

Biggest drop by a team that won: In a new note, no one fits this mold this week. No one dropped who won. USC, Texas, LSU, Notre Dame, Florida, and Auburn all did not move a spot, and all those teams won last weekend. LSU and Notre Dame each were jumped by two teams in the process. LSU was jumped by Miami (nice show against Virginia Tech) and Penn State (nice show against Wisconsin). Notre Dame was jumped by Penn State and Oregon (nice show against California).

Biggest jump by a team that was in my rankings last week- 6- Oregon. The Ducks were so impressive because they proved they could win without Kellen Clemens at quarterback. There were doubts about whether or not they could still win without Clemens, and they proved that they could. This team certainly looks like the second best team in the Pac Ten after UCLA's gaffe. They have the look of potentially getting an at-large bid to a BCS bowl, possibly the Fiesta Bowl.

The case for Notre Dame. For those of you who have complained about Notre Dame only beating one ranked team, let's do a little bit closer look at this statistic. Here is a list of the ranked teams and who they have beaten that are ranked. For this purpose, the Coaches Poll is being used:

USC- 2 (Oregon, Notre Dame)
Texas- 3 (Texas Tech, Colorado, Ohio State)
Alabama- 1 (Florida)
Miami- 2 (Virginia Tech, Colorado)
LSU- 2 (Florida, Auburn)
Penn State- 2 (Ohio State, Wisconsin)
Notre Dame- 1 (Michigan)
Virginia Tech- 3 (West Virginia, Boston College, Georgia Tech)
Georgia- 0
Ohio State- 0
Oregon- 1 (Fresno State)
Florida- 1 (Georgia)
Texas Tech- 0
UCLA- 0
West Virginia- 1 (Louisville)
Florida State- 2 (Miami, Boston College)
Auburn- 0
TCU- 0
Wisconsin- 1 (Michigan)
Fresno State- 0
Colorado- 0
Michigan- 1 (Penn State)
Louisville- 0
Georgia Tech- 1 (Auburn)
Boston College- 0

To break it down further, how do we know that the ranked teams that these teams have beaten are legitimate teams? By this standard, it would be based on how many ranked teams their ranked opponents have beaten. USC's ranked opponents have just beaten two ranked teams. However, that is two more than Texas three ranked opponents have beaten. Virginia Tech has also beaten three ranked teams, but those have combined for just two ranked wins.

In conclusion, an arguement can be made about any team not having beaten anybody all year if you want to make that case. The fact is that when Notre Dame played USC, who is popularly considered the top team in the country, the Irish came within an eyelash of upsetting the Trojans. If people are ranking Notre Dame high because of how good they thought Purdue or Pittsburgh would be, then they are definitely wrong. However, if they are ranking Notre Dame where they are because of what they have seen on the field taking into account the strength of their competition, then they can definitely rank Notre Dame in the Top Ten. What are the voters doing? I have no idea. I believe that probably some have them ranked highly because of the Notre Dame name and the fact that some people (like Lee Corso) told them in the preseason that Notre Dame would be 0-6 after the USC game. That means the schedule must be tough, right? However, why do I have Notre Dame ranked where I do? While my judgement may be wrong, it is because of what I see with my eyes.

Week Eleven: Monday

2005-11-07T09:00:00.000-05:00

Weekend in Review

Game of the Week
Florida 49, Vanderbilt 42 (2OT)

The Commodores put up a valiant effort, but could not come up with the program changing win. Jay Cutler fired two touchdown passes in the final two and a half minutes of the game (surrounding a Vanderbilt recovered onside kick) to tie the game up at 35. They were considering going for two following the second touchdown and trying to win the game in regulation, but a celebration penalty pushed the ball back fifteen yards, and the Commodores were forced to kick the extra point. The celebration penalty certainly appeared to be an awful call. Jemalle Cornelius made a spectacular catch in the back of the endzone in the second overtime on a pass from Chris Leak and Reggie Lewis intercepted Cutler to end the game and give the Gators the win.

Upset of the Week
Arizona 52, UCLA 14

So it has seemed like for weeks that UCLA would find a lead they couldn't overcome. However, down 31-7 at halftime, there was still a sense that the Bruins were going to make a run. When the scored reached 52-7, it became clear that the Wildcats were going to win. Mike Bell had 153 yards on 16 carries, and Gilbert Harris had 116 yards on 16 carries. Willie Tuitama completed 14 of 24 passes for 204 yards and two touchdowns. The Wildcats now are 2-0 when the freshman quarterback has started under center. The Wildcats have no shot at a winning season, but still have a shot to get to 5-6, with Washington and Arizona State ahead on the schedule.

Team of the Week
Miami Hurricanes

So people can say that they expected Miami to win, but few people expected them to walk into Blacksburg and win by twenty. Their 27-7 win over previously unbeaten and number three Virginia Tech was very impressive. Kyle Wright played a pretty good game, and the defense forced Marcus Vick into six turnovers, including four fumbles. Charlie Jones ran the ball 24 times for 97 yards and a touchdown. The Hurricanes seemed to outplay Florida State in their season opener, but could not win. If they had found a way to win that game, they would be undefeated and really challenging Texas for the number two spot in the BCS.

Player of the Week
Matt Leinart, USC

While his stats are not gaudy, Matt Leinart looked very impressive as the Trojans disposed of Stanford 51-21. He completed 22 of 28 passes for 259 yards and four touchdowns. That includes only two of three for fourteen yards in the second half. The score was 44-7 at the half, and Leinart did not play much in the second half. If he had continued on his first half pace, he would have completed 40 of 50 passes for 490 yards and eight touchdowns. In other words, that first half was amazing, and he made sure the Cardinal did not hang around in the game. They are starting to beat teams early in the game, which shows that the Trojans are becoming more focused. Just in time for a difficuly three game stretch against California, Fresno State, and UCLA.

Stat of the Week
627 total yards.

Where has the Texas A&M defense gone? The Aggies were supposed to improve on defense and be a thrilling offense this year. Those two things would make this a season to remember for the Aggies. It hasn't happened. Facing Texas Tech's high octane offense, the Aggies surrendered 627 total yards. They gained just 353 yards. They lost, 56-17. The Red Raiders have games against Okahoma State and Oklahoma remaining to get to 10-1. For the Aggies, they must beat either Oklahoma or Texas or they will not go to a bowl game.

Play of the Week
Fumbled kickoff returned for a touchdown by Alabama.

The Alabama offense is bumbling around a little bit. Ahead just 3-0 on Mississippi State at halftime on Saturday, the Tide knew they needed to get some things going with the defense and special teams. Derek Pegues took the second half kickoff for Mississippi State and he got hit by Jimmy Johns forcing the ball loose. Matt Miller picked it up from the 15 yard line and returned it for a touchdown. That made the score 10-0 Alabama, and the Tide was rolling. They never did score an offensive touchdown, but with the defense and the special teams putting points on the board there isn't much need for an offensive touchdown.

Turnover of the Week
Reggie Lewis interception.

Reggie Lewis intercepted Jay Cutler in the second overtime of Florida's 49-42 win over Vanderbilt. The Commodores had been having so much success moving the football, so the Gators desperately needed a turnover if they were going to win the game. Sure enough, that is exactly what they got. The interception by Lewis, who had been getting picked on all night by Cutler, ended the game and sent Gators fans home happy.

Key First Half Moment of the Week
Darryl Tapp's helmet-to-helmet

Virginia Tech's Darry Tapp got called for a helmet-to-helmet hit on Kyle Wright late in the first quarter on Saturday night. He actually hit Wright in the chest, according to replays, but the officials deemed it a hit to the helmet because of how Wright's head snapped when he got hit. The hit took a little bit of sting out of Tapp and the rest of the Virginia Tech defense, gave momentum to Miami, quieted the crowd a little bit, and enraged Frank Beamer. When Miami scored later in the drive to make it 10-0, the game was all but over.

Moment of the Week
Brady Leaf's touchdown pass.

The Oregon Ducks were relying on their third string quarterback Brady Leaf to help them beat California and inch closer to a possible BCS bowl bid on Saturday afternoon. He completed a four yard touchdown pass to James Finley in overtime that turned out to be a game winner. Brady is the younger brother of Ryan of Washington State fame. If he continues to play like he did on Saturday, Ryan might become known as Brady's older brother.

Week Ten: Friday

2005-11-04T09:00:00.000-05:00

Weekend Stars
Thoughts on who the stars of the weekend will be.

Game of the Week- Miami at Virginia Tech- This is a match-up of two Top Five teams. The former Big East rivals now meet with the ACC Championship on the line. The winner becomes the favorite to win the ACC Coastal Division, while the loser will either be out (Miami) or need some help (Virginia Tech) to win the division. Marcus Vick is as exciting of a quarterback as they come. Kyle Wright hasn't done a lot so far this year. Both defenses are great. This should be a low scoring slugfest.

Upset Special- UCLA at Arizona- South Carolina is more than a field goal underdog at Arkansas in the most bizarre line of the week in my mind. Onto this game, Arizona found a starting quarterback in Willie Tuitama last week in their win over Oregon State. He looked very good, and now playing at home against a Top Five team, he really has a chance to shine. Last year, Arizona pulled off an upset over a nationally ranked Arizona State team late in the season at home. With how UCLA always seems to struggle for three quarters, there has to be a week when that will catch up to them. It may not be until the USC game. Or it may be against Arizona State. Or it may be this week.

Team of the Week-Colorado Buffaloes- The Buffaloes will have the Big Twelve North all but locked up with a win over Missouri this weekend. If they win this weekend and then win against either Nebraska or Iowa State, they will be back in the Big Twelve Championship Game. This team will come out fired up. It ought to be a great game, but with the Buffaloes at home, they find a way to win.

Players of the Week-
1) Cody Hodges, Texas Tech- The Texas A&M defense has been very movable this weekend, and Hodges puts up great numbers against bad defenses. Hodges ought to put up big numbers.
2) Reggie McNeal, Texas A&M- The Texas Tech defense isn't exactly a rock, though they did shut out Baylor last week. McNeal ought to put up huge numbers agains this defense. Does anyone else think this game will be a lot of fun?
3) Maurice Drew, UCLA- It's always exciting to watch Drew play. He is slowly gaining momentum in a push for the Heisman Trophy. Arizona's defense is OK, but Drew ought to put up some nice numbers.
4) LenDale White, USC- OK. It's White's turn now. Stanford might be able to contain Bush, and Leinart may not have a great game. Look at what the Cardinal did to Drew and Olson from UCLA last weekend for three quarters. However, White is the type of pounding back that Stanford will have a tough time defending.
5) Marcus Vick, Virginia Tech- The last two weeks have been great weeks for Vick. This Saturday, he will be playing the best defense he has faced all year in Miami. The home crowd will be frenzied. He is defnitely the player to watch this weekend. If he has a good game, the Hokies win. If he doesn't, the Hokies don't.

Thursday in Review
Quick recap of last night's game.

Louisville 42, Pittsburgh 20- The Cardinals and Panthers were tied at seven thirty five seconds into the game without an offensive snap being made. Amazing. The Cardinals offense was sharp until the red zone, and Pitt couldn't muster much in the second half on offense. This win makes it really a two team race for the Big East title between West Virginia and South Florida.

One Liners
Very fast preview of tonight's game.

Toledo at Ohio (8:00 ESPN2)- Toledo needs some help to win the MAC after last week's stunning loss to Central Michigan. Ohio is hoping for a winning season under Frank Solich. The Rockets would love to win out and put some pressure on CMU to win out and win the MAC.

Week Ten: Thursday

2005-11-03T09:00:00.000-05:00

Viewer's Guide

Which games should you watch this weekend? What games should you be keeping your eyes on during each time period? We've got it all worked out for you.The day is divided into five parts. Some are more unequal than others due to the start time of the games. All times are Eastern.

The time periods are early games (start time before 2:00), afternoon (start time from 2:15-5:00), late afternoon (start time from 5:15-7:15), evening (start time from 7:30-9:45), and late night (start time after 10:00). The games are ranked by time period and give you a couple of reasons to watch each game, whether it is questions that need to be answered or something else altogether. The games are the games listed on CollegeFootballNews.com as the television games for this weekend. Only Saturday games are included.

Let's get it started!

Early Games

1. Iowa at Northwestern (12:00 ESPN)- 1) The winner holds onto hopes of possibly winning a share of the Big Ten title. 2) Northwestern's offense is very dangerous and one of the better ones in the Big Ten. With Bret Basanez and Tyrell Sutton, this team can score on anyone, even Iowa's tough defense. 3) Can Drew Tate finally put up some of those numbers that we have been waiting for him to all year against a highly questionable Northwestern defense?

2.Texas at Baylor (12:30 FSN)- 1) Baylor's defense held Texas Tech to just six points through three quarters last week. They are much improved, and are looking to slow down the red hot Longhorns offense lead by Vince Young. 2) Vince Young is trying to win the Heisman Trophy and another solid performance against Baylor would certainly help that. 3) Texas needs to keep on winning if they are going to hold off Virginia Tech for number two in the BCS Standings. A close game against Baylor could really hurt them.

3. Boston College at North Carolina (12:00 JP/Gameplan)- 1) The loser is out of the ACC title race. BC may be out of it by the end of the day even if they win, but the Tar Heels can still win their division if they win out and get Virginia Tech to slip up once more along the way, along with Miami slipping up at least once more. 2) Mathias Kiwanuka and the Eagles defense did not play well against Virginia Tech last week. They would love to put a hurting on North Carolina. 3) The Tar Heels jumped out to a 16-7 halftime lead last week against Miami. The second half left a bad taste in their mouth. Here comes another chance to beat a ranked team.

4. South Florida at Rutgers (12:00 Gameplan)- 1) Rutgers has all but locked up a bowl game. South Florida needs three more wins to get there. Both teams only have one conference loss, and with West Virginia looming on USF's schedule, they still have a shot at the conference title. 2) Ryan Hart and the Scarlet Knights offense has been very tough to stop at times this year, particularly in Big East play. 3) Ben Moffitt and the USF defense have been one of the stingiest in the Big East so far this year.

5. Michigan State at Purdue (12:00 ESPNU/Gameplan)- 1) The Spartans can become bowl eligible with a win. Purdue is already out of the bowl game. 2) Drew Stanton is one of the better quarterbacks in the Big Ten when he is on. Purdue's defense isn't that good, so Stanton should have a good game. 3) Purdue's offense has been pretty good for the most part, and Michigan State's defense isn't that good. This could be a real shootout.

6. Minnesota at Indiana (12:oo ESPN2)- 1) The Golden Gophers need a win to become bowl eligible. Indiana is still holding out hopes for a bowl game at 4-4. 2) Laurence Maroney is one of the best running backs in the country and going against an iffy Hoosiers defense should make things exciting. 3) Blake Powers is one of the more underrated quarterbacks in the Big Ten and could put up big numbers against an average Gophers defense.

7. South Carolina at Arkansas (12:30 JP/Gameplan)- 1) Coming off a dramatic win over Tennessee last week, a win over Arkansas would make the Gamecocks bowl eligible. 2) How are the Razorbacks favored in this game? It seems a little bit odd. 3) Blake Mitchell and the Gamecocks offense isn't great, but it is getting the job done.

8. Tulane at Navy (1:30 CSTV)- 1) When is Lester Ricard going to have one of those breakout games where he shows everyone why he is an NFL prospect? 2) Navy needs two more wins to become bowl eligible. This one would be a huge one to get. 3) Tulane must win out to become bowl eligible. With Southern Miss, Tulsa, and Rice ahead on their schedule, winning three out of four isn't out of the question, but winning all four looks like a tough call. They have to start being impressive here in this one.

Afternoon

1. Wisconsin at Penn State (3:30 ABC/Gameplan)- 1) The winner becomes the favorite in the Big Ten race and will guarantee at least staying tied in the loss column with Ohio State for another week. 2) Penn State's offense has become downright scary in recent weeks with Michael Robinson really developing into a solid quarterback. Going up against the Badgers defense, he ought to continue to put up good numbers. 3) Brian Calhoun is a solid running back and probably deserves more mention for the Heisman Trophy than he is getting. The Badgers running back will need to have a huge day against the Nittany Lions defense.

2. California at Oregon (3:30 ABC/Gameplan)- 1) Dennis Dixon will be starting his first game at quarterback for the injured Kellen Clemens. How will Dixon look? 2) Joe Ayoob has been coming around ever so slowly. Will this finally be his breakout game against an Oregon team that has an average defense? 3) Both teams still harbor hopes of an at large bid to the BCS. Oregon has just one loss and a 10-1 team will be tough to keep out, although it has happened before. California already has two losses, but winning out would include a win over USC next week, which might be enough to earn them a BCS bid.

3. North Carolina State at Florida State (3:30 ABC/Gameplan)- 1) The Seminoles need just one more win to lock up the ACC Atlantic title. Playing the last place team in the division seems like a good time to get it. 2) Chuck Amato has come under fire in Raleigh. If his team comes out and plays lights out against Florida State and pulls off the upset, it could be just the spark he needs to stop the negative momentum. 3) Drew Weatherford has been playing better and better, and might have played his best game last Saturday. Can he continue to progress against the Wolfpack?

4. Missouri at Colorado (3:30 ABC/Gameplan)- 1) The Tigers and the Buffaloes are the top two teams inthe Big Twelve North. The winner becomes the favorite to win the division. 2) Brad Smith can be thrilling one week and nothing the next week. Last week, he had nothing against Kansas. This week, he needs to turn up his play against Colorado. 3) Joel Klatt has been playing very well at quarterback for the Buffaloes. If he can continue to shine against Missouri's average defense, the Buffaloes will be in prime position to play for the Big Twelve title.

5. Tennessee at Notre Dame (2:30 NBC)- 1) Will the Vols finally play a complete game in South Bend? They've been something of road warriors in recent years, and a win at Notre Dame would really take some of the heat off of Phil Fulmer. 2) Brady Quinn and the Notre Dame offense has been lighting everybody up. They might not have faced a defense as good as Tennessee's yet this year. 3) Notre Dame is still trying to get an at-large bid to the BCS. They need to keep on winning to make that happen.

6. Alabama at Mississippi State (3:30 CBS)- 1) Sylvester Croom would like nothing more than to come up with a signature win over a Top Five Alabama team. 2) Alabama's defense is in the top two in the country. How is Mississippi State planning on moving the ball against them? Jerious Norwood isn't a bad running back, but the Bulldogs haven't been able to generate any offense this season. 3) Brodie Croyle is still looking for a playmaker like Tyrone Prothro, although D.J. Hall has been playing well. However, Croyle has done just enough to get this team to 8-0. Croyle is still being mentioned in some circles for the Heisman Trophy. He could use another big show to try to get this team higher in the BCS and his name further up the Heisman charts.

7. Army at Air Force (3:30 ESPN Classic)- 1) It's always fun when two of the service academies get together. 2) Shaun Carney has been leading a fairly explosive Air Force offense that put up 41 points last week...in a loss! 3) Army won their last game against Akron. Can Zac Dahman and the Black Knights run their winning streak to two before playing two winnable games against Massachusetts and Arkansas State? If they do, and they win their next two, the Army-Navy game at the end of the year could look a whole lot more appealing.

8. Illinois at Ohio State (3:30 ESPN)- 1) Still waiting to see if Ron Zook can get his team up for one game against a big time team and really make that team sweat. 2) The Buckeyes Ted Ginn Jr. has been playing much better the last two or three weeks. If he can keep it going, the Illini do not have an answer for him. 3) A.J. Hawk and the Buckeyes defense were not pleased to give up 31 points in the win over Minnesota last week. They will look to make amends as they try to stay tied with the Wisconsin-Penn State winner atop the Big Ten.

9. New Mexico State at Boise State (3:05 Gameplan)- 1) One final tune up for the Broncos before playing for the WAC title next week against Fresno State. 2) Jared Zabransky and the Broncos offense has still been pretty much unstoppable at home this year. 3) Hal Mumme and the New Mexico State offense hasn't gotten going this year. However, Mumme loves playing these big name teams and would love nothing more than to pull the big upset in this one.

10. BYU at UNLV (3:00 Gameplan)- 1) John Beck and Curtis Brown can be as unstoppable as any duo in the Mountain West when they are playing well. They were playing well in last week's 62-41 win over Air Force. 2) BYU needs two wins in their final three games to become bowl eligible. With Utah and Wyoming ahead, they really need to win this one. 3) Jarrod Jackson had a big passing day in the Rebels last time out against Utah. Playing well in this one would help the Rebels gain momentum for next season.

Late Afternoon

1. Texas A&M at Texas Tech (7:00 FSN)- 1) Texas Tech has a very explosive offense and the Aggies haven't been slowing too many people down this year. 2) Reggie McNeal is about as exciting of a quarterback as there is in college football this year. The Red Raiders defense hasn't exactly been known for being a brick wall. 3) Both teams still have Oklahoma on their schedule. That means that the winner has a very real shot at finishing second in the Big Twelve South.

2. UCLA at Arizona (6:30 FSN Regional)- 1) The Bruins seem to fall behind every week and come from behind in remarkable fashion. They have become one of the most fun teams to watch in the country. 2) Arizona beat Oregon State last weekend. Suddenly, the Wildcats have some momentum. Can they keep it going by upsetting a very highly ranked team? 3) Drew Olson and Maurice Drew are two of the most exciting players in all of college football.

3. Oregon State at Washington (6:30 FSN Regional)- 1) Washington is looking for their first signature win under Tyrone Willingham. They have looked improved, but haven't been able to put it all together yet. 2) The Beavers have one of the best wide receivers in the country in Matt Haas. 3) The Beavers need two wins in their last three games to get bowl eligible. With Stanford and Oregon ahead, this is almost a must win.

4. Houston at UCF (6:00 i/PAX)- 1) Every game is critical for UCF as they will become bowl eligible with a win and stay atop CUSA East with a win. What a turnaround for the Golden Knights. 2) Kevin Kolb is a very good quarterback and this Cougars offense can put up points in bunches. They are striving to get their fifth win on the road to bowl eligibility. 3) Steven Moffett has developed into a real leader of the UCF offense. He can be inconsistent, but he carries a very confident presence onto the field.

5. Louisiana-Lafayette at North Texas (7:00 Gameplan)- 1) It's come to this. North Texas and Louisiana-Lafayette both have two conference losses, and the Mean Green are underdogs at home. It is truly a shocking turn of events in the Sun Belt. 2) North Texas has two great running backs in Patrick Cobbs and Jamario Thomas. Neither one has gotten going this year. Thus the reason they are struggling. 3) After losses to Florida Atlantic and Arkansas State, few people would have expectedd Michael Desormeaux to be able to lead the Ragin Cajuns to upset wins of Middle Tennessee and Troy the last two weeks. But that is exactly what he has done, to get them back in the conference title picture.

Evening

1. Miami at Virginia Tech (7:45 ESPN/ESPNU)- 1) The Hokies can win the Coastal Division with a win and a North Carolina loss earlier in the day. 2) Marcus Vick and the Hokies will be going for three straight over Miami. They also are hoping to do enough to jump Texas for number two in the BCS Standings next Monday. 3) Kyle Wright and the Miami offense has been a disappointment. Can they get it going against a very strong Hokies defense?

2. San Jose State at Fresno State (9:00 Gameplan)- 1) This is the last tune up game for the Bulldogs before Boise State and USC in back-to-back weeks. 2) Paul Pinegar has been leading this offense very nicely. He should be able to put up nice numbers against the Spartans defense. 3) Adam Tafralis has been becoming more comfortable in the Spartans offense. If he can produce, then the Spartans have a shot to hang with the Bulldogs, who may be caught looking ahead.

3. Rice at SMU (8:30 CSTV)- 1) The loser will be last in the CUSA West. 2) SMU has shown marked improvement this season. Jerad Romo has been doing what it takes from the quarterback position. 3) Rice has a quirky running attack that is fun to watch. They may be 0-7, but they just lost a thriller to UTEP, showing that they are still playing hard each and every game.

Late Night

1. Stanford at USC (10:00 TBS)- 1) Trent Edwards has proven that he is a solid option at quarterback for the Cardinal. He would love to lead an upset over the Trojans. 2) The Cardinal nearly beat USC last year, losing 31-28. The Trojans could be out for revenge, or the Cardinal could just have a team that matches up well with USC. 3) As always, let's just say Matt Leinart, Reggie Bush, LenDale White. This is getting repetitive.

One Liners
Quick previews of tonight's game.

Pittsburgh at Louisville (7:45 ESPN)- Louisville was eliminated from the Big East title race last night by West Virginia's win. Pittsburgh can still win the Big East by winning out. Louisville has proven to be much tougher at home than on the road this year.

Wednesday in Review
Very quick recap of last night's game.

West Virginia 45, Connecticut 13- The Mountaineers never let this one be in doubt. They are a dominant team right now and clearly the class of the Big East. Of course, all that can change pretty quickly with a game against Pittsburgh and a trip to Cincinnati still on the schedule. Still, the Mountaineers look to be in great position to win the conference and get a BCS bowl bid.

Week Ten: Wednesday

2005-11-02T09:00:00.000-05:00

Overreaction Wednesday
Getting a little bit crazy and having some knee jerk reactions to last weekend's games.

Is there going to be a better game this weekend than Colorado State at TCU? The game is for the Mountain West title more than likely. While Miami-Virginia Tech is a great game, and Penn State-Wisconsin is huge, don't forget to tune in to this one.

Georgia can lose to Auburn and still win the SEC East as long as Florida loses once more. Enter a suddenly hot South Carolina team playing at home against the Gators. Enter Steve Spurrier and all of his swagger against his former school. Does anyone else think that the Florida-South Carolina game just became must see TV?

Now, it's only a matter of time. The Fresno State-Boise State game is less than two weeks away. Can anyone else wait? After the blowout by Boise State over a good Nevada team and Fresno State surviving at Hawaii, this game could be a great one next Thursday night. I know I can't wait.

How about a five way tie atop the Big Ten? It would be tough to happen. Here's what has to happen. Iowa has to beat Northwestern this weekend. Wisconsin has to beat Penn State. Then Iowa has to beat Wisconsin. Michigan has to beat Ohio State. All the other games have to be won by Iowa, Wisconsin, Michigan, Ohio State, and Penn State. Suddenly, we would have five teams at 6-2 in Big Ten play. For those of you that don't think it will happen, after the craziness of the Big Ten season, what would be more appropriate?

Remember that some of these things are gross overreactions to the way teams played this weekend. These are not necessarily straight predictions, but rather thoughts that many may not consider that are very distinct possibilities.

News & Notes

Randy Sanders, Tennessee's offensive coordinator, has resigned after an absolutely horrible offensive display this season for the Vols. He will stay on the staff at least until the end of the season. There are rumors that David Cutcliffe will be taking over. He was the former Vols offensive coordinator, before going to Ole Miss as head coach. He then worked for a brief time at Notre Dame with Charlie Weis before stepping down in the spring.

Bill Callahan, Nebraska's head coach, made a throat slash gesture on the sideline during the game against Oklahoma on Saturday. The gesture has so far gone unpunished, but also unexplained by Callahan. He claims he made no such gesture, but it certainly appears he did based on video evidence. He has stated that he was making a sign that he makes towards his children when he says he's had it "up to here."

D.J. Shockley, Georgia's starting quarterback, was at practice on Tuesday. It appears that he will be cleared to play next Saturday against Auburn, which is a good thing for the Dawgs as they look to win the SEC East.

Quotables

Mack Brown, Texas head coach, on Baylor: "(Defensive coordinator) Bill Bradley is a friend of mine, and you don't get the nickname 'Super Bill' unless you have accomplished quite a bit on the field. He has quite a reputation in the coaching and playing profession. Baylor has improved immensely, and we know we're going to be in for a struggle up there. The Baylor defense has been really impressive, and they can do some things that previous Baylor teams did not do."

Bill Callahan, Nebraska head coach: "I'm 49 years old, and I don't go around [making] throat-slashing signs and symbols," Callahan said. "I don't use that type of demeanor, and I never have. This is way blown out of proportion. I don't know where we get all these gang symbols and allegations. This is 'Gesture-gate' or something....I don't think they're going to send me to Alcatraz."

Marcedes Lewis, UCLA tight end: "My heart hurts right now. I'm emotionally drained," said Lewis, the star tight end held to three receptions. "It's going to be tough to sleep. ... Every time I looked at (Drew) or any other players, that fire was still in their eyes. We weren't going down like this - not here, not to Stanford."

Rant of the Week

This week, I chose the rant based on the sheer volume of e-mails I get like this each and every week from fans across the country. Nothing excites the college football world more than Notre Dame. This is from someone claiming that Notre Dame is overrated. How many e-mails have I gotten like this over the last several weeks? Countless. This was a very well articulated e-mail. So here it is.

Okay, since no one else will say it because they are too busy falling all over themselves to kiss this team's rear end, I will. Notre Dame is the most overrated team in college football. There, I said it. They do not deserve to go to a BCS bowl, and all their whining about not being higher in the polls is unwarranted. Let's look at the facts:

Start off the season with a big road win over a ranked Pitt team. Right, the same ranked Pitt team that lost to the football powers Rutgers and Ohio later. They couldn't manage more than 6 points against Nebraska. They couldn't score in a woman's prison with a fistful of pardons early on. That's one "ranked team" that shouldn't count. Current record: 4-4

They beat Michigan in Ann Arbor, a tough thing to do any time, but MIchigan has highly underachieved this year and pretty much blew this game themselves as opposed to getting beat. They are currently ranked, however, so I will make it a toss up.

Lost at home to Michigan State. Yes, the great and powerful Notre Dame lost to a jekyll and hyde team. If Notre Dame is as good as they say they are, then why lose your home opener to a team that can't even win when it matters on their own home turf, next!

Road win at Washington. Washington would struggle to beat Sisters of the Poor and Blind right now. And it was still a semi-close game throughout. No real acocmplishment here.

Beat a "ranked" Purdue team on the road. I was at this game it was the sorriest performance of a Purdue team I have seen since Jim Colletto walked the sidelines in West Lafayette. This team has self destructed and I am not sure they could get wins over Arizona or Akron again if they played now. Another "ranked" win that has less value.

The infamous USC game. Well, Charlie Weiss said it earlier int he year after Michigan State, so the same applies here. Great game, you still lost, that's 0-2 at home to start. Who wouldn't get up to play the #1 team at home and play well when said home team has some talent. I'd be disappointed if they didn't make it a close game, but they still lost, end of story.

Beat a 3-4 BYU team at home. Congratulations, you did what you were supposed to do. Big deal

Their one marquee remaining game is against Tennessee, who has lost quite a bit of its own luster and may not even make a bowl this season if Vanderbilt comes to play. Navy and Syracuse should be the cakewalks they likely will be, and Stanford is another team Notre Dame should beat regardless.

The bottom line is this, Notre Dame has not accomplished anything, they are overrated, and it's high time someone said it.

--Travis Wilson

And there you have it. I don't necessarily agree with Travis, however, I should now prepare myself to get plenty of e-mails from Notre Dame fans claiming that I am bashing the Irish. Sigh...

Week Ten: Tuesday

2005-11-01T09:00:00.000-05:00

Under Pressure
Larry Coker, Miami

The Miami Hurricanes have not been satisfied since the 2001 season with the job that Coker has done. They were only slightly satisfied in 2002, when Miami lost in the national championship game. Since then, the fans have been very frustrated with Coker and the Hurricanes. The pressure is mounting in the face of it all. The loss to Florida State to open the season only made it worse. Now, the Hurricanes battle a very good Virginia Tech team with the ACC Coastal Division title likely on the line. For Coker to keep the fans at bay, he could really use a win of this magnitude.

Dennis Dixon, Oregon

Dixon is filling the rather large quarterback shoes left behind by Kellen Clemens when he went down with his season ending injury. To open things up, he has to start against California. While the Bears defense is not immovable, they are good enough to give Dixon and the Ducks a lot of problems. With a potential BCS at-large spot on the line, the Ducks really need to win this game over a quality team. However, that will be very tough for Dixon in his first start. He's got the athletic skills to make things happen, but can he do it when there is no Clemens on the sideline waiting to check back in?

College Gameday Site
Blacksburg, Virginia

The crew will be at the week's biggest game as Miami visits Virginia Tech. The Hurricanes and Hokies are both in the Top Five and sit atop the ACC Coastal Division standings. The winner is still alive in the national championship race, while the loser will need help just to get to the ACC Championship Game. It is a great match-up and the crew had no right to go anywhere else this week, despite the fact that they have already visited Virginia Tech once this year.

Thoughts on the Rankings

USC jumped Texas and is back to nuber one. All is right with the world again. The panic mode that hit last week was, as I said last week, uncalled for and the Trojans are right back on top.

UCLA is behind all the other unbeatens and even some one loss teams in the rankings. However, this is not cause for concern. The Bruins will have their shot against USC to prove where they belong.

The computer screwy stat of the week is that Notre Dame is combined to be ranked 22 by the computers, whereas Oklahoma is 21. Discuss.

My rankings

It is still tough to do these rankings each and every week. They are so subjective, it is a very difficult task. However, I believe there is beginning to be some clarity, which is always a nice thing. In parentheses is the team's rank last week.

1. USC 8-0 (1)
2. Texas 8-0 (2)
3. Virginia Tech 8-0 (3)
4. Alabama 8-0 (5)
5. UCLA 8-0 (6)
6. LSU 6-1 (7)
7. Florida State 7-1 (8)
8. Miami, FL 6-1 (9)
9. Notre Dame 5-2 (10)
10. Penn State 7-1 (11)
11. Georgia 7-1 (4)
12. Ohio State 6-2 (12)
13. Oregon 7-1 (14)
14. Florida 6-2 (16)
15. Auburn 6-2 (15)
16. Wisconsin 8-1 (19)
17. Boston College 6-2 (13)
18. Texas Tech 7-1 (17)
19. West Virginia 6-1 (20)
20. California 6-2 (21)
21. Fresno State 6-1 (24)
22. Michigan 6-3 (25)
23. TCU 8-1 (22)
24. Georgia Tech 5-2 (--)
25. Colorado 6-2 (--)

Dropped Out: Northwestern 5-3 (18), Minnesota 5-3 (23)
Both teams lost last week. The only quality win on Minnesota's schedule right now appears to be Michigan, although Colorado State and Tulsa certainly are not bad wins. Northwestern is still just not ready for primetime. While they are a very good team and should return to the rankings if they acn come up with wins in the coming weeks, they are not quite Top 25 material right now.

Biggest Drop by a team still in my rankings: 7- Georgia. The Bulldogs first loss of the year dropped them a long way in my rankings. The reason is that they have looked very average for much of the year. Their most impressive win over Tennessee suddenly doesn't look so impressive anymore. All in all, I like Georgia, and still expect them to win the SEC East, however, I would probably pick (on a neutral field) any of the teams ranked ahead of them, particularly with D.J. Shockley out.

Smallest drop by a team that lost: 4- Boston College. The Eagles loss to Virginia Tech was ugly in terms of stats, but they hung in there score-wise until very late in the game. This is still a good team, but probably not a great team. They are not quite yet ready for primetime, but they are a solid team that no one should want to play in a bowl game.

Biggest drop by a team that won: 1- TCU. The Horned Frogs barely beat San Diego State. Scraping by the Aztecs isn't going to send them soarng up the rankings. However, they are slowly sneaking their way up the BCS rankings. Probably they can not get high enough to sniff a BCS bowl, but they are gaining ground. That loss to SMU has to really hurt right about now.

Biggest jump by a team that was in my rankings last week: 3- Wisconsin. The Badgers didn't just play lights out against Illinois. However, they played well enough to justify a jump. With Northwestern and Boston College both losing ahead of them, and Texas Tech not looking great for three quarters against Baylor (and still suffering because of their early season schedule), the Badgers moved up the rankings three spots.

The great debate. Debating over which of the three teams (Virginia Tech, Texas, and USC) should be playing for the national title is a fun way to pass the time. Alabama and UCLA both do not enter the discussion at this point based on several games that were far closer than they should have been. UCLA will have a real shot if they beat USC. Alabama needs to beat LSU and Auburn impressively and face a one loss Georgia team and beat them impressively as well to have a real shot at getting there without any losses from the top three. However, what is becoming clear is that the top three are very good teams. While any one of them may still lose, and I really should not be making comments like this on the first of November, but rather on the tenth of January, it certainly looks like these are three of the top teams in recent memory. Last year's USC/Oklahoma/Auburn debate was cute, but none of those teams would beat any of these three teams, in my opinion. While Auburn and USC proved how solid they were throughout the year, I am beginning to think we are looking at three truly remarkable teams that may all be in the Top Ten Teams of the Last Ten Years. Obviously, this is one of those statements that should be reserved until after the season, but I am just trying to give you some food for thought here.

One Liners
Quick preview of tonight's game

UAB at Memphis (7:30 ESPN2)- The Tigers DeAngelo Williams and the Blazers Darrell Hackney lead their teams into a key showdown. Both teams want to go to bowl games. If Memphis can win, they will keep their dreams of winning CUSA East alive. This is a key game for bowl hopes, and in the CUSA race.

Week Ten: Monday

2005-10-31T09:00:00.000-05:00

WEEKEND IN REVIEW

Game of the Week
UCLA 30, Stanford 27 (OT)

The Bruins trailed the Cardinal 24-3 midway through the fourth quarter and it looked like Stanford was going to set up their shot at the Pac Ten title this week against USC. But then Drew Olson and company got rolling. Olson lead three drives of 65, 72, and 66 yards in the final seven minutes and all resulted in touchdowns. When Stanford mustered just a field goal in overtime, the game was as good as over. Olson found Brandon Breazell from 23 yards away for a touchdown. This was the time that the Bruins looked to be dead, yet they still found a way to win. These Bruins have survived four fourth quarter double digit deficits in their last five games and are still one of college football's five unbeaten teams. If they can survive a trip to Arizona (who just beat a good Oregon State team last weekend), and a home date with Arizona State, the trip to USC to end the year could be for a spot in the national championship game.

Upset of the Week
South Carolina 16, Tennessee 15

Tennessee fans have seen this before. Steve Spurrier in the house. Peyton Manning in the house. Another loss to Spurrier. The Vols were two touchdown favorites over an OK South Carolina team. The Vols dominated much of the game, but only lead 12-7 in the fourth quarter. South Carolina scored a touchdown and a field goal in the final quarter, and the Vols could only muster a field goal. This is probably the low point of Phil Fulmer's coaching tenure in Knoxville. Fans were spotted wearing bags over their heads after this loss. The heat is definitely on the coaching staff at this point as the Vols have sunk to fifth in the SEC East heading into November after being number three in the country in the preseason.

Team of the Week
Florida Gators

The Gators finally looked a little bit like the team that we expected them to be in the preseason in their 14-10 win over Georgia. The offense still wasn't perfect, but the two first half touchdowns made the Gators offense look more sharp and more effective than they have looked most of the season. The Gators benefited from the injury to D.J. Shockley, but they won and kept their SEC East title hopes alive. If they can beat South Carolina and Vanderbilt and Georgia loses to either Auburn or Kentucky, Florida will be the SEC East champions. Not bad in Urban Meyer's first year.

Player of the Week
Brian Calhoun, Wisconsin

Calhoun may not have put up the huge numbers that Matt Leinart and Vince Young did, but his day was more efficient. He rushed the ball 35 times for 197 yards and five touchdowns in leading the Badgers in their win over Illinois. He continues to do everything for Wisconsin on offense and continues to play a key role in the team's wins. Calhoun's five touchdowns keep Wisconsin in the Big Ten title race...at least until next Saturday when they square off with Penn State.

Stat of the Week
506 total yards.

Vince Young accounted for 506 total yards against Oklahoma State. He threw the ball for 239 yards and two touchdowns. He ran the ball 21 times for 267 yards and two touchdowns. He probably deserved player of the week, but he only completed 15 of 30 passes, and a fifty percent completion percentage kept him out of the Player of the Week category. However, 506 total yards (with more than half coming by rushing the football) will get him into this category. It was quite a show by Vince Young.

Play of the Week
Vince Young's 81 yard touchdown run.

With his team trailing 28-12, and facing a third down and 11 from his own 19 yard line, Young dropped back to pass and scrambled to his right. He took off down the sidelines. About 81 yards later, he was in the endzone for a touchdown. The score ignited the Longhorns as they went on to win 47-28. If Oklahoma State holds there and gets the ball with the sixteen point lead in the second half, who knows what would have happened? The Cowboys could have kept the momentum from the first half and there is no telling what would have transpired. However, Young's run was a great one and broke the backs of the Oklahoma State defense.

Turnover of the Week
Kevin O'Connell's interception by David Roach.

San Diego State quarterback Kevin O'Connell was leading the Aztecs down the field with his team trailing TCU 20-13 in the fourth quarter. They were at the Horned Frogs two yard line with just under ten minutes remaining. It was third and goal. O'Connell threw the pass into the endzone and it was intercepted by Roach. The interception kept TCU ahead 20-13. They drove down and kicked a field goal to make it 23-13. They eventually won 23-20. The interception saved the game for TCU.

Key First Half Moment of the Week
Leon Hall's 83 yard fumble return for a touchdown.

Tyrell Sutton rushed to the left side in Northwestern's game against Michigan. The Wolverines were already ahead 7-0 early in the first quarter. However, Sutton got hit by Leon Hall, and he fumbled the ball. Hall then raced over, picked up the ball and ran it 83 yards for a Michigan touchdown. It was 14-0 Wolverines. While the Wildcats got back into the game, it always felt like Michigan was in control after that. If Northwestern could have scored there and made it 7-7, we could have been talking about a whole different ball game. Michigan won 33-17. (If you take off Michigan's touchdown and add one to Northwestern's, it is 26-24, so immediately it becomes a lot closer.)

Moment of the Week
Raymell Rice two yard touchdown run.

Rutgers ran the ball in from two yards away with Raymell Rice against Navy to put the Scarlet Knights ahead 31-21 with just 5:56 left in the game. Leading by two scores with less than six minutes left made winning a near certainty (unless you are playing UCLA, apparently). The win made Rutgers bowl eligible. They haven't had a winning season since 1992, and haven't been to a bowl game since 1979. It certainly appears that the Scarlet Knights will go bowling, and it is not out of the question that they win the Big East (although it would take two West Virginia losses, probably). The fans rushed the field and the Scarlet Knights finally have their bowl game. It was truly a great moment to watch Rutgers celebrate their win.

Week Nine: Friday

2005-10-28T09:00:00.000-04:00

Weekend Stars
Thoughts on who the stars of the weekend will be.

Game of the Week- Georgia vs. Florida in Jacksonville- If you love defense, then this is your game. The two teams will both struggle on offense and both will make plays with their defense. This is another battle between top SEC defenses, and no one should be surprised if it winds up 6-3 like last week's Tennessee-Alabama game. Georgia is looking to clinch the SEC East with a win, while the Gators will get back into the SEC East race if they can muster a win. Georgia is looking to stay alive in the national championship race, while the Gators are looking to earn back a measure of respect.

Upset Special- Michigan at Northwestern- The Wolverines are favored on the road against the team that may be playing the best football in the Big Ten right now. Chad Henne and the Michigan offense can put up a ton of points, however, Brett Basanez and Tyrell Sutton are both ready to roll. The Wildcats offense is superior to Michigan's. However, Michigan has the better defense. This could be the best game of the weekend as both teams could be able to score forty in this one. This should be a very high scoring, entertaining affair.

Team of the Week- Texas Longhorns- Oklahoma State still carries some name value, however that is about all that they carry at this point. The Cowboys are downright bad right now. The Longhorns are playing to prove that they deserve the number one ranking in the BCS. The Cowboys would love to end their national championship dreams, but after anticipating a landmine game for a month now, I'm finally convinced that this Texas team isn't going to fall into a landmine...yet.

Players of the Week-
1) Vince Young, Texas- The Oklahoma State defense has been anything but tough so far this year. The Longhorns quarterback ought to put up huge numbers on the Cowboy.
2) Matt Leinart, USC- Washington State's defense is pretty lousy. While the Cougars have a shot to outscore the Trojans, Leinart should be lighting up the Cougars defense all day long.
3) Paul Pinegar, Fresno State- The Bulldogs trip to Hawaii should be a tough one. However, scoring points should not be a problem. Pinegar should put up absolutely fabulous numbers on the islands againat Hawaii.
4) Reggie Bush, USC- Bush ought to spend the part of the day where Leinart isn't lighting up the Washington State defense doing it himself. He ought to explode for huge yards in all facets of the game.
5) Brodie Croyle, Alabama- If Croyle is playing enough of the game against Utah State, he ought to put up good numbers. The offense will be much better than they have been in recent weeks.

ONE LINERS
A quick preview of tonight's games.

Colorado State at New Mexico (8:00 ESPN2)- Justin Holland is a great quarterback for the Rams, while DonTrell Moore is a great running back for the Lobos. Colorado State still controls their Mountain West fate with only one conference loss and TCU still to come. They need to win this game to keep that.

THURSDAY IN REVIEW
A very quick recap of Thursday night's games.

Virginia Tech 30, Boston College 10- The Hokies dominated the game in all facets but the scoreboard until the closing minutes, when a late interception returned for a touchdown finally put the game out of reach. The Hokies dominated all the statistical categories. If Virginia Tech keeps on winning like that down the stretch, they may just deserve to jump into number two, even without a loss from Texas or USC.

Week Nine: Thursday

2005-10-27T09:00:00.000-04:00

Afternoon

1. Georgia vs. Florida in Jacksonville (3:30 CBS)- 1) Georgia can clinch the SEC East with a win in this game. It would be their third SEC East title in four years. 2) Chris Leak and the Gators have struggled on offense. That means it is probably not the best time to be facing the stout Bulldogs defense. 3) Joe Tereshinki will be the starting quarterback for the Dawgs. Not a good place for him to be stepping in, against a great defense in the World's Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party.

2. Washington State at USC (3:30 ABC/Gameplan)- 1) Admit it. Just because Washington State is 0-4 in the Pac Ten you think they have no shot. They might not, but they've been up by double digits in the fourth quarter each of the last three weeks. 2) The Cougars have really struggled on defense this year. Umm...Matt Leinart, Reggie Bush, LenDale White. 3) USC's defense hasn't been outstanding this year. With Jerome Harrison running the ball and Jason Hill catching the ball, the Cougars can make big plays on just about any team in the country.

3. Maryland at Florida State (3:30 ABC/Gameplan)- 1) Drew Weatherford and the Seminoles offense seems to be coming around, although they still need to get the ball in the hands of Lorenzo Booker and Leon Washington more. Maryland's defense is still pretty sharp, lead by D'Qwell Jackson. This should be an interesting match-up. 2) Sam Hollenbach should be playing for the Terps on Saturday. He needs to play better than he did against Virginia Tech for them to have any chance. 3) The Terps upset the 'Noles last year. A win in this game would tie the Terps in the loss column with Florida State in conference play. If Virginia Tech also beats Boston College on Thursday night, they could find themselves in a tie for first by the end of the day.

4. Purdue at Penn State (3:30 ABC/Gameplan)- 1) Purdue has been one of the biggest disappointments in college football. One more loss and they won't even be bowl eligible at the end of the year. One of these weeks, the Boilermakers are going to pull off an upset and show everyone why they were so highly regarded in the preseason. 2) The Nittany Lions control their own Big Ten destiny. If they win out, they are the Big Ten champs. Michael Robinson and the Penn State offense has to be licking their chops to go against this Purdue defense with this much on the line. 3) Brandon Kirsch is a solid quarterback, and he hasn't played too poorly this year. He'll have a tough task against the Penn State defense.

5. Clemson at Georgia Tech (3:30 ESPN)- 1) The Tigers and the Yellow Jackets both really want to get to a bowl game. With both teams sitting at four wins, winning this game would really help either teams chances. 2) Charlie Whiterhurst has been a very solid quarterback this year and has gotten from the running game and James Davis. Georgia Tech has got a great defense, though, making this an interesting match-up. 3) Reggie Ball is one of the most inconsistent players in the country. However, with playmakers like P.J. Daniels and Calvin Johnson on his team, he can't help but have a big game every now and then. Clemson's defense is not great, so this could be one of those big games.

6. Utah State at Alabama (3:00 Gameplan)- 1) Surely this week the Tide won't have to win on a last second field goal, right? 2) Tide coach Mike Shula might want to have the subs ready. After losing Brodie Croyle in a blowout last year against Western Carolina and Tyrone Prothro this year in a blowout against Florida, he came under some heat for having those guys in the game. If this one gets ugly, he should be advised to get those players out of the game quickly. Will he? 3) Leon Jackson III makes the Aggies offense go. He's the team's leading rusher and the team's quarterback. This will provide an interesting test to the Alabama defense before facing LSU and JaMarcus Russell, another guy who can both run and throw.

7. Iowa State at Texas A&M (3:30 ABC/Gameplan)- 1) Don't look now, but Texas A&M is in control of their own destiny in the Big Twelve South. The Aggies struggled to get by Kansas State last weekend, but that could be just the win this team needs to get their momentum rolling. 2) Reggie McNeal is one of the top threats in the country. He can do it all and he can single-handedly light up the scoreboard if the other team isn't careful. Bret Meyer is similarly athletic for the Cyclones. 3) Iowa State got back to winning last week against Oklahoma State. They are probably out of the Big Twelve North race without a lot of help. However, if they were to win out and get to 5-3 in the conference, they would still have an outside shot of at least tying for the division title. That might have to do for this Iowa State team.

8. Air Force at BYU (3:00 Gameplan)- 1) Air Force is 3-5 and BYU is 3-4, meaning that the loser of this game is probably not going to a bowl game. The winner keeps those bowl hopes alive. 2) Shaun Carney leads a tough to defend Air Force offense against a good BYU defense. 3) John Beck is one of the more underrated quarterbacks in the country. He could put up big numbers against an average Air Force defense.

Late Afternoon

1. Michigan at Northwestern (7:00 ESPN)- 1) The Northwestern offense is lead by Brett Basanez and Tyrell Sutton. Those two are both explosive and will look to lead the Wildcats against a good Michigan defense. 2) Chad Henne, Mike Hart, Kevin Grady, Steve Breaston, and Jason Avant are all players that have potential to put up big numbers offensively any week. With the way Northwestern's defense tends to play, that week could be this week. 3) Michigan only sits one game out of the Big Ten lead at 3-2 in conference play. Northwestern is a half game out at 3-1, and tied in the loss column. This game has huge ramifications on who wins the Big Ten.

2. UCLA at Stanford (6:30 FSN)- 1) This game suddenly looks like a real trap game for the Bruins. Stanford has won three straight, including last week's win over Arizona State. Now they are 4-2, and the Bruins perfect 7-0 record will be put to the test. It is also huge in the Pac Ten. Stanford is 3-1 in conference play, while the Bruins are 4-0. Both teams have USC remaining on their schedule. The winner could become the team most likely to win the Pac Ten if USC does not. 2) Maurice Drew and Drew Olson are both lighting it up. Both are receiving some mention in the Heisman Trophy voting. Stanford's defense is just OK, so those two could put up big numbers again. 3) With how many close games UCLA has been playing lately, the Cardinal have hope. Trent Edwards has been playing better and better at quarterback and he would love to lead his team to this home upset.

3. Fresno State at Hawaii (7:00 ABC/Gameplan)- 1) The Warriors always play well at home. They nearly beat Boise State there earlier this year. Now, they would love to take out the other big WAC team. 2) Paul Pinegar leads the explosive Fresno State offense that is getting ready for showdowns with Boise State and USC in November. If they don't win here, though, those games won't mean as much. 3) Colt Brennan has taken over admirably as the starting quarterback for the Warriors. He has been leading the offense very well. After averaging just 22.0 points per game during their 1-4 start, they have been averaging 45.0 points per game in their last two wins.

4. Texas at Oklahoma State (7:00 TBS)- 1) The Longhorns are #1 in the BCS this week. What will it take to stay ahead of USC another week? 2) Vince Young and the Longhorns offense can put up huge numbers. With a defense like the Cowboys have, that could be a very bad thing. The Cowboys have been giving up 42.8 points per game to Big Twelve opponents this year. 3) The Cowboys offense has also been stifled as of late, with Bobby Reid not able to get the offense moving. Still D'Juan Woods is a very explosive receiver that could have a huge game against almost any team. Plus, the Cowboys always seem to be able to get up for one of these games that they shouldn't win every year and make it close.

5. UTEP at Rice (6:00 i/PAX)- 1) The Miners are receiving votes in the Top 25. They have a big C-USA West showdown with Tulsa next week. Will they be looking past Rice? 2) Jordan Palmer and the Miners offense could really explode this week. 3) The Rice rushing attack can pose problems to defenses. At 0-6, the Owls would love to pose problems to someone.

6. Marshall at Tulane (7:00 CSTV)- 1) Bernard Morris and Ahmad Bradshaw need to show some explosiveness on offense or else the Thundering Herd's season could fall apart very quickly. Tulane's defense has been the cure for a lot of woes in the past. 2) Lester Ricard and the Tulane offense can score points in bunches. Marshall's defense has been pretty good so far this year, though. 3) At 2-2 in conference play, Marshall is not out of the C-USA East title race. Both teams need the win to help them get to six wins and a bowl game.

Evening

1. South Carolina at Tennessee (7:45 ESPN2)- 1) Phil Fulmer vs. Steve Spurrier. The rivalry continues... 2) The Vols and Gamecocks are battling it out for third in the SEC East. The winner still has an outside shot at second, particularly if Florida loses earlier in the day to Georgia. 3) When will the Vols offense get going? Rick Clausen and the Vols offense has sputtered badly. Blake Mitchell and the Gamecocks offense has been playing pretty well, but they haven't faced a defense as good as Tennessee's in a while.

2. North Texas at LSU (8:00 Gameplan)- 1) Due to Hurricane Katrina, this game was postponed from the first week, which means that LSU is playing North Texas this week and Appalachian State next week. Will the Tigers be fully focused or will they just be going through the motions? 2) North Texas still has back-to-back rushing champions, Patrick Cobbs and Jamarrio Thomas. They could explode any week. 3) JaMarcus Russell has been improving at quarterback for LSU.

3. Idaho at New Mexico State (8:00 Gameplan)- 1) The two teams have combined to go 1-13 this season. A win here would obviously be huge to getting something positive this year. 2) Steve Wichman hasn't been bad for the Vandals at quarterback. Against New Mexico State's defense, that ought to be good enough for some points. 3) The offense for the Aggies hasn't gotten rolling yet under Hal Mumme. Will this be the week that it finally does?

Late Night

There are no late night television college football games this Saturday. This is one of the truly saddest sentences I have ever had to write.

One Liners

Very quick preview of Thursday night's game.

Boston College at Virginia Tech (7:45 ESPN)- This game is probably the best Thursday night game of the year. This is one of the better games in the ACC this year. Watch it!

Week Nine: Wednesday

2005-10-26T09:00:00.000-04:00

Overreaction Wednesday
Getting a little bit crazy and having some knee jerk reactions to last weekend's games.

The best chance to upset UCLA before the USC game? Try Stanford. Yes, the same Stanford that lost to UC-Davis earlier this year in what has to be the most embarrassing loss that a team from a BCS conference has had this season. But the Cardinal are back. After their upset of Arizona State this past weekend, they are 4-2 and 3-1 in Pac Ten play. Suddenly, they look like a potentail bowl team. The Bruins better be careful when they visit there this weekend.

If you don't normally watch Thursday night football, then you are really missing out, particularly this week. In what is probably the best game of the whole weekend, Boston College heads to Virginia Tech in a game that has potential to be a preview of the ACC Championship Game. This is an old Big East rivalry, and it ought to be something truly great.

The three most important games in the Big Ten down the stretch are Wisconsin at Penn State on November 5, Northwestern at Ohio State on November 12, and Ohio State at Michigan on November 19. People might have guessed that Ohio State, Michigan, and even Penn State would be involved in the title chase down the stretch before the season. But few people expected Wisconsin and Northwestern to be playing meaningful games in November this year.

Texas toughest remaining game may be at Baylor on November 5. The Bears have played very well so far this year and are just really searching for that one signature win to hang their hat on this year.

That being said, look out for Texas A&M. The Aggies need to win at home against Iowa State, at Texas Tech, and at Oklahoma. Winning those games does not seem outlandish. If they do win those games, then their game against Texas on November 25 will be for the Big Twelve South title. In other words, there is still a better-than-you-think chance that we won't be watching Texas in the Big Twelve Championship Game. A two loss team ranked in the mid-teens and struggled early in the year playing host to a team ranked in the top two in the BCS standings that has beaten the home team several years in a row... If it all sounds familiar, it is because it is. Sounds a lot like Colorado-Nebraska back in 2001, and we all know how that one turned out.

Remember that some of these things are gross overreactions to the way teams played this weekend. These are not necessarily straight predictions, but rather thoughts that many may not consider that are very distinct possibilities.

News & Notes

North Carolina's visit to Miami has been moved to a noon start time because Hurricane Wilma damaged the Orange Bowl's lighting system. The Hurricanes are seeking to get revenge on the Tar Heels for their shocking home win a year ago.

Tennessee's running back Gerald Riggs has hurt his ankle and is done for the year and his career at Tennessee. Riggs was expected to be one of the best backs in Tennessee football history coming out of high school, but never quite lived up to those expectations. Arian Foster will step in for Riggs now.

Vince Young announced his intentions to return to school for his senior season this week. Will he stay or will he go? Well, it looks like he will stay. He probably has been told by NFL scouts that he still needs to improve his passing a little bit, but he has potential to be as good as Michael Vick is for the Atlanta Falcons.

Quotables

Fisher DeBerry, Air Force head coach: "It just seems to be that way, that Afro-American kids can run very, very well. That doesn't mean that Caucasian kids and other descents can't run, but it's very obvious to me they run extremely well."

Mike Gundy, Oklahoma State head coach: "We have Texas coming in Saturday, and I have voted them No. 1 in the polls the last four weeks. They are what I consider the best team in the country and do so many things well... Donovan Woods is a team player and our only healthy safety at this point, and he is a true team player. His 'motor' runs at a high speed, and we can't wait to get him through a complete spring training in 2006 on defense."

Walt Harris, Stanford head coach: "We've come off the clouds and settled back to earth. We gave ourselves 24 hours to enjoy the victory over Arizona State, and now it's time to get ready for the eighth-ranked UCLA football team that is undefeated and obviously very talented. We know it's going to be a real battle; they have some very fine football players and an excellent scheme that puts a lot of pressure on you."

Rant of the Week

Several good options yet again this week for the Rant of the Week. There were some great responses to last week's talk about weddings during football season. Here may be the best one:

To Chris Williams of Dallas, Texas….I’m getting married in April. Yes, I took a stand, but I’ll never let her hear me bragging about it!

--Phil, I mean Bill, from Georgia (last name withheld incase my future wife ever finds her way to this site).

However, the Rant of the Week needs to be something more than that. So, after carefully considering all the options, the one that was chosen was written in response to something I said about Randy Sanders and how bad the Tennessee offense is last Tuesday.

Your comments about Randy Sanders, Offensive Coordinator at Tennessee made me think about someone (or two) much worse. Jim Bollman and Jim Tressel at Ohio State have had mediocre to poor offenses for the five years they have been there. This includes the National Championship in 2002. 2002 was because of a unique team and circumstances, but Tressel and Bollman have been living off of it for three years. Just look where they finished in the nation in total offense for these five years. Right now they are last in the Big Ten in total offense with a team that was predicted to play for the national championship. This is with a supposedly major football power that continually ranks in the top ten nationally in recruiting. Northwestern and Michigan State can't hold a candle to OSU in recruiting but right now are in the top four in the nation in total offense. These two coaches are magician too. They have made a Heisman candidate, one of the top group of receivers in the nation, five years of highly recruited running backs, the most highly recruited quarterback in Ohio (Zwick), and the entire offense disappear. Takes some kind of talent to do that. Five years of offensive offenses can't be blamed on the players or some special circumstance. Such consistency can only be blamed on the coaches. Ask why Northwestern and Michigan State have such good offenses. Why a quarterback, receiver or running back would come to OSU is beyond me. Only to buried in the boneyard of those who have gone before.

--Jerry Welbourn
Durango, Colorado

Now, the Buckeyes are 5-2 and still in the hunt for the Big Ten title. I bet the Vols wish they could say the same thing. There are some similarities between Ohio State, Michigan, and Tennessee. All three have great talent. All three seem to have conservative coaches that play a lot more close games than they should and in the end cost their team a game or two somewhere along the way. It has struck me through various e-mails throughout the year how easily those three teams names can be substituted in e-mails. Very interesting indeed.

Week Nine: Tuesday

2005-10-25T09:00:00.000-04:00

Under Pressure
Jim Tressel, Ohio State

It is not totally shocking that the Buckeyes can't seem to get the ball moving on offense in the vast majority of their games. After all, this is the Ohio State football that we have come to know under Tressel. However, there are starting to be some rumblings about Tressel and some frustration with him over the way he coaches games. In other words, the fans are becoming restless with close games and close to the vest, conservative offense. The Buckeyes showed signs of snapping out of it last week against Indiana, but the pressure gets cranked up a little bit this week at Minnesota. The Gophers are a good team and tough to beat at home. The Buckeye faithful really want to see a win over a top notch team. They've beaten Iowa and Michigan State for their two best wins of the year. This would qualify as another quality win, but their first quality road win.

Joe Tereshinki, Georgia

Yes, Tereshinki played well against Arkansas filling in for the injured D.J. Shockley. However, this week, things get amped up a little bit when he will be playing against Florida's tenacious defense. Florida's defense is good. There is no telling how long Shockley will be out, but Tereshinki needs to step up in a big way and help fill in for him. He is not as fast as Shockley and does not have the playmaking ability. However, he seems to be comfortable dropping back in the pocket to throw the ball. He'll need to do that if the Dawgs are going to beat Florida this Saturday afternoon.

College Gameday Site
Jacksonville, Florida

The Georgia Bulldogs and the Florida Gators play their annual meeting in Jacksonville, Florida in the World's Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party. The crew will be going to see a match-up between the D.J. Shockley-less Bulldogs and the upset minded Gators. The Dawgs are highly ranked and in the race for the national title. This is a rivalry game, and there is a lot on the line. A Georgia win would clinch the SEC East for them, while a loss opens up the door for Florida just a crack. Georgia needs to win to stay in the national title race, while the Gators would love to get some good national publicity for a change. This is a huge game, but it might be the second biggest game of the weekend, as the Thursday night game between Boston College and Virginia Tech is really big as well.

Thoughts on the rankings

Texas? Number one? Really? I did not expect to see Texas jump USC this year in any of the major rankings unless the Trojans lost a football game. Yet, here the Longhorns are this week, sitting alone atop the BCS rankings. The margin is incredibly slim, and it means little in the long run because the top two play for the national title. However, wouldn't it be at least a little interesting if Virginia Tech were able to catch USC in the rankings and the defending champion USC, who was ranked number one, would not be able to play for the national title?

The top one loss team is Miami, with LSU and Penn State not too far behind. The top six teams are all unbeaten, but the race for the top once beaten spot belongs currently to the Hurricanes. The Tigers are right behind them. Penn State is not too far back, either. If all the teams start losing, these are teams to pay attention to.

OK, so how about the computer rankings that have Texas #1, Alabama #2, Georgia #3, Virginia Tech #4, and USC #5? Ummm... If you like that one, you'll love the one where Texas is #1, Alabame #2, Virginia Tech #3, USC #4, and Georgia #5. Or how about the one that has Wisconsin and LSU ranked ahead of UCLA and Alabama?

As someone reminded me last week in an e-mail, these things tend to work themselves out. There is no reason to panic at all. We all look at the worst possible scenarios at this time of year and worry. However, things will make a lot more sense come the first Sunday in December.
My Rankings

With what seems like an endless list of teams that only kind of deserve to be ranked, this week is a tough week to rank teams. The last fifteen are basically reserved for all the Big Ten teams you can find, as a remarkable six teams are ranked in those fifteen spots. The number in parentheses is the team's ranking last week.

1. USC 7-0 (1)
2. Texas 7-0 (2)
3. Virginia Tech 7-0 (3)
4. Georgia 7-0 (4)
5. Alabama 7-0 (5)
6. UCLA 7-0 (6)
7. LSU 5-1 (8)
8. Florida State 6-1 (10)
9. Miami, FL 5-1 (7)
10. Notre Dame 5-2 (9)
11. Penn State 6-1 (11)
12. Ohio State 5-2 (12)
13. Boston College 6-1 (15)
14. Oregon 7-1 (16)
15. Auburn 5-2 (14)
16. Florida 5-2 (17)
17. Texas Tech 6-1 (13)
18. Northwestern 5-2 (--)
19. Wisconsin 7-1 (--)
20. West Virginia 6-1 (22)
21. California 6-2 (23)
22. TCU 7-1 (24)
23. Fresno State 5-1 (25)
24. Minnesota 5-2 (--)
25. Michigan 5-3 (--)

Dropped Out: Michigan State 4-3 (18), Virginia 4-3 (19), Tennessee 3-3 (20), Oregon State 4-3 (21).
All four lost. Michigan State's loss was by an embarassing margin. Virginia's was to an average team. Oregon State's was by a lot of points, except for that they won statistically. Tennessee's was a very close game and was their third loss to a team ranked in my top sixteen. However, the Vols just have looked so anemic on offense, they just do not deserve to be ranked right now.

Biggest drop by a team still in the rankings: 4- Texas Tech. The Red Raiders may not be all that bad. After all, Texas has been pounding everybody in their path so far this year. Texas Tech could bounce back and go 10-1, but they probably will not be in the running for an at large BCS bid based on the somewhat weak Big Twelve.

Smallest drop by a team that lost: 1-Auburn. The Tigers went into LSU and played valiantly and lost by a field goal in overtime. If normally reliable John Vaughn had just been able to make a kick, then Auburn probably wins in regulation and they are sitting in the Top Ten. They do not deserve to drop much.

Biggest drop by a team that won: 2- Miami. Admittedly, the Hurricanes did not win last weekend, but rather did not play due to Hurricane Wilma. However, they have not been overly impressive, and they did lose to Florida State. So it makes sense for them to be behind the Seminoles. Plus, LSU just beat a very highly ranked Auburn team. These three are all very close.

Biggest jump by a team that was in my rankings last week: 2- Florida State, Boston College, Oregon, West Virginia, California, TCU, and Fresno State. Of course, Northwestern and Wisconsin jumping into the rankings so high are more impressive than these jumps.

The USC-Texas debate. So it has become increasingly clear that these are the two top teams in the country. The Trojans and the Longhorns at the present time are clearly the #1 and the #2 teams. Virginia Tech is clearly the #3 team. Georgia, Alabama, and UCLA could all be rotated around any sort of way for the #4-6 teams. USC holds onto number one for one more week. I've been thinking for a while about moving Texas to number one, but it just seems like USC still has done a bit more. Texas win over Ohio State is a very impressive win, but possibly no more impressive than USC going into Notre Dame and winning. Texas win over Texas Tech is nice, but so was USC's at Oregon. Then what are you left with? Texas beating Oklahoma? Missouri? Colorado? USC beating Arizona State? Arkansas? Hawaii? It still seems like (as much as people are complaining about USC's schedule) that the schedules are roughly equal.

Week Nine: Monday

2005-10-24T09:00:00.000-04:00

WEEKEND IN REVIEW

Game of the Week
Michigan 23, Iowa 20 (OT)

With the inconsistencies that the Wolverines have lived through this year, snapping the Hawkeyes home winning streak at 22 seemed inconceivable. Jerome Jackson ran the ball in from one yard out in the first overtime to give Michigan a 23-20 win. Iowa had tied up the game on the last play of regulation with a 32 yard field goal by Kyle Schlicher. They drove from their own 12 to set up that field goal in the final 2:12. The momentum seemed to be in Iowa's favor, and they were at home. Yet the Wolverines mustered their first back-to-back wins of the season. Suddenly, the Wolverines are right back in the Big Ten title race.

Upset of the Week
North Carolina 7, Virginia 5

Virginia's season apparently will be defined by their win over Florida State last week. They could only muster 199 total yards against the Tar Heels and just couldn't muster anything offensively. The Tar Heels now are on a bit of a roll, as they are back to .500 and are 2-1 in ACC play. Their first quarter touchdown was enough to give them the win. After losing 69-14 to Louisville just two weeks ago, the Tar Heels win over a ranked Virginia team is truly shocking.

Team of the Week
Northwestern Wildcats

Anytime you beat a team 49-14, you have played a good game. When you do it on the road, you've played a great game. When you are an unranked team and you do it to a ranked team, you have played one heck of a football game. The Wildcats have been lurking in the Big Ten title chase for weeks now, but really announced their arrival with their stunning win over Michigan State. The Wildcats feel behind 7-0 early, but rattled off 49 unanswered points. Brett Basanez absolutely lit up the Michigan State defense for 331 yards passing. Drew Stanton turned the ball over four times. The Wildcats are 5-2 and 3-1 in Big Ten play, with their lone loss coming in the final seconds against Penn State. This offense can put points on just about anyone. They are the real wild card in the Big Ten title race.

Player of the Week
Brad Smith, Missouri

Smith became the sixth quarterback ever to run for 200 and throw for 200 yards in a game. He turned up the heat after his Tigers blew a 21-3 first quarter lead and wound up tied with Nebraska at 24 at halftime. The 41-24 win really puts Missouri in a good position in the Big Twelve North race. They are in position to possibly be able to unseat Colorado as the division favorite. He was 21-36 for 234 passing yards and one touchdown throwing the ball, and he ran the ball 28 times for 246 yards and three touchdowns. This was the Brad Smith we've all been waiting all year to see.

Stat of the Week
Drew Olson's six touchdown passes.

Drew Olson did not light up the Oregon State defense for too many yards, but he set a UCLA record with his six touchdown passes in the Bruins 51-28 win over the Beavers. He threw for 262 yards and six touchdowns in the game. He only completed 16 passes, which makes his six touchdown passes all the more remarkable. The Bruins played their best game in a month in beating the Beavers, despite giving up 511 yards.

Play of the Week
Demetrius Eaton 86 yard fumble return.

Northwestern led Michigan State 14-7, with just under 11 minutes to play in the first half. Michigan State was driving. Drew Stanton fumbled the football, though, and defensive lineman Demetrius Eaton picked the ball up and rumbled 86 yards for the touchdown. That made the score 21-7, and really put Northwestern in the drivers seat for the rest of the game. Watching defensive linemen score touchdowns is always exciting.

Turnover of the Week
Cory Anderson fumbles through the endzone.

With Tennessee driving for what appeared to be at least a go ahead field goal late in the fourth quarter at Alabama, the one thing the Vols had to do was protect the football. Rick Clausen dumped off a pass to the fullback Cory Anderson, who was sprinting towards the endzone. Roman Harper hit Anderson right on the football and forced the ball loose. The ball rolled forward and bounded out the back of the endzone. That gave the ball to Alabama at their own 20 yard line and set up their game winning field goal drive in the Tide's 6-3 win.

Key First Half Moment of the Week
Cody Hodges interception late in the first half against Texas.

Hodges had driven the Red Raiders of Texas Tech down to the Texas 3 yard line, with his team trailing 24-10 late in the first half. He threw a pass that bounced off of Aaron Harris and fell into the arms of Tim Crowder for an interception. The Longhorns took over at their own 12 yard line, and promptly drove 88 yards on four plays, and went up 31-10 just before halftime. The fact that the Red Raiders could not cut the lead down to one score just before halftime was huge and really put Texas on a run where they were able to blow out Texas Tech, 52-17.

Moment of the Week
John Vaughn's field goal bounces off the upright.

In a truly remarkable football game late Saturday night, LSU handed Auburn a 20-17 loss. The overtime win was thrilling, and it was not over until John Vaughn had missed his fifth field goal of the day. The 39 yarder clanked off the left upright and bounded away, sealing the win for LSU. He also missed a 49 yarder at the end of regulation wide left that would have won the game. Vaughn (the hero of last year's 10-9 Auburn win) was the goat in this game.

Week Eight: Thursday

2005-10-20T09:00:00.000-04:00

Viewer's Guide

Which games should you watch this weekend? What games should you be keeping your eyes on during each time period? We've got it all worked out for you.

The day is divided into five parts. Some are more unequal than others due to the start time of the games.All times are Eastern. The time periods are early games (start time before 2:00), afternoon (start time from 2:15-5:00), late afternoon (start time from 5:15-7:15), evening (start time from 7:30-9:45), and late night (start time after 10:00). The games are ranked by time period and give you a couple of reasons to watch each game, whether it is questions that need to be answered or something else altogether. The games are the games listed on CollegeFootballNews.com as the television games for this weekend. Only Saturday games are included.

Let's get it started!

Early Games

1. Northwestern at Michigan State (12:00 ESPN2)- 1) You know you can't wait to watch the two best offenses in the Big Ten do battle. Neither team can stop anybody (or so it appears), and these offenses light it up. Look for lots of points. 2) The loser of this game will have three conference losses, which all but eliminates them from the Big Ten title chase. The winner stays just one loss behind the leaders. 3) Tyrell Sutton is one of the better running backs that people don't talk about. He has a chance to be something really special at Northwestern.

2. Nebraska at Missouri (12:30 FSN)- 1) There is so much riding on this game. The winner will be no worse than in a tie for the North lead with Colorado. The loser will fall a game behind the winner, and possibly also Colorado in the race for the division title. While it is not an elimination game in the North, it is pretty darn important. 2) Brad Smith is always capable of lighting it up or stinking it up. The Tigers certainly need him to be lighting it up this week against the very solid Huskers defense. 3) Nebraska won their first road game of the year last year at Baylor. They had to run the ball the whole second half to do it. Cory Ross is a very underrated running back for Nebraska, and he needs to have a big game to take the Missouri crowd out of the game.

3. Georgia Tech at Miami (12:00 ABC/Gameplan)- 1) Miami isn't out of the national championship race yet, and that is due to their rock solid defense. Of course, they are playing another very talented defense in Georgia Tech. Look for this to be a slugfest. 2) The Yellow Jackets have the explosive Calvin Johnson catching passes and P.J. Daniels running the ball. If they can get the ball in their hands, they pose one of the more serious threats to the Miami defense than they have faced yet this year. 3) Kyle Wright has a sprained thumb and is expected to play. How will he perform with this injury?

4. Michigan at Iowa (12:00 ABC/Gameplan)- 1) Don't look now, but here comes Iowa. Quietly, the Hawkeyes have moved into a tie for the Big Ten lead at 3-1. Most people still wonder if Iowa is for real or not, but they can go a long way to proving how for real they are this week against Michigan. 2) Michigan likes to win one, then lose one, then win one, then lose one so far this year. This is their week to lose if that's the case. Or, did the Wolverines dramatic win over Penn State last week finally propel them to the team that they were supposed to be in the preseason. 3) Drew Tate and Chad Henne both have been underachieving this year. They were considered by some to be the two best quarterbacks in the Big Ten in the preseason. Can either one of them break out of their struggles?

5. Virginia at North Carolina (12:00 JP/Gameplan)- 1) Um...Virginia. You still have a lot to prove. Last week's win over Florida State was nice. Let's see if you can follow it up with a nice game against North Carolina. 2) Interestingly, the Tar Heels are only one game behind Virginia Tech in the Coastal Division in the loss column. They need to beat a good team like Virginia as they prepare for Miami, Boston College, Maryland, and Virginia Tech down the stretch. 3) Marques Hagans looked like a solid quarterback last weekend against Florida State. His inconsistency has plagued him throughout his career, so another solid performance this week would be nice.

6. Ohio State at Indiana (12:00 ESPN)- 1) Ohio State needs to get Ted Ginn Jr. more involved in the offense...or Ginn needs to step up and be a player. Playing the Hoosiers defense ought to give him a chance to get involved. 2) The Hoosiers are lead by Blake Powers, who has already thrown a remarkable 20 touchdown passes this year. He hasn't faced a defense as good as Ohio State's yet. 3) Indiana can really make some noise with a huge home upset of the Buckeyes. They are 4-2, but people don't believe they are for real. This is a chance to show they are.

7. Arkansas at Georgia (12:30 JP/Gameplan)- 1) The Dawgs could use a nice easy blowout win to show the world that they are one of the nation's best teams. So far, they have played somewhat close games pretty much every game except for the Boise State game. Of course, none of the games have really been in doubt in the final minutes, but none have been blowouts either. 2) Houston Nutt really needs a big win like this to keep his head off the chopping block. 3) D.J. Shockley has played very well as a quarterback. There have been inconsistencies, but he seems to be coming around.

8. Louisville at Cincinnati (12:00 ESPNU)- 1) The Cardinals struggled at Kentucky and lost at South Florida and West Virginia. Another road game, another chance for the Cardinals to get beat? 2) Cincinnati can get right into the heart of the Big East race with a win. They are currently 1-1 in conference. Louisville is 0-2 in conference play and probably playing spoiler in the conference race. How will the Cardinals respond to being reduced to a spoiler? 3) Brian Brohm and this Louisville offense have the potential to put up huge numbers. They are one of the more explosive offenses in the country.

9. Syracuse at Pittsburgh (12:00 Gameplan)- 1) This must be an awful match-up, right? No meaning here, right? If you haven't been paying attention, you probably haven't noticed that Pittsburgh has won back-to-back games and is sitting at 3-4 and 2-1 in the Big East. The Panthers are right back in the conference race. 2) Tyler Palko and the offense can score some points. Syracuse defense has been pretty good. They need to slow down the Panthers if they hope to win. 3) Damien Rhodes does everything for the Orange offense. He runs the ball. He catches the ball. He is a solid back.

Afternoon

1. Texas Tech at Texas (3:30 ABC/Gameplan)- 1) The winner of this game will be heavily favored in all their remaining games, which means the winner becomes the favorite, not only in the Big Twelve, but also to go undefeated. 2) The Red Raiders offense can put up huge numbers behind Cody Hodges and Taurean Henderson. Texas' defense is very good, but it is just about impossible to keep the Red Raiders from scoring some points. 3) Texas is lead by Heisman Trophy frontrunner (or at least among the top three), Vince Young. He can do it all. He really hasn't had a bad game yet. If he keeps that up, the Red Raiders defense will not be able to contain him.

2. Tennessee at Alabama (3:30 CBS)- 1) This is one of the more bitter rivalries in the SEC. These two teams really just flat out don't like each other. The Vols would love nothing more than to end their archrivals unbeaten season. 2) Brodie Croyle, Ken Darby and the rest of the Alabama offense looked completely out of sync against Ole Miss last week in their first week without Tyrone Prothro. Is that what the offense is going to look like from here on out? Tennessee's defense is solid, so it will be a test. 3) Erik Ainge. Rick Clausen. Clausen. Ainge. Then Ainge. Then Clausen. Or is it Ainge? Or is it Clausen? The quarterback merry-go-round continues for the Vols this weekend.

3. Purdue at Wisconsin (3:30 ABC/Gameplan)- 1) The Boilermakers are looking to work their way back towards a bowl game. They're going to need some great performances down the stretch to get there since they are 2-4 right now. A win against Wisconsin would be a nice start. 2) The Badgers played the "we rather be lucky than good" card last week against Minnesota. How good are the Badgers? We still don't really know. 3) Brian Calhoun and John Stocco lead an offense that has been explosive lately against a Purdue defense that is a huge question mark.

4. Rutgers at Connecticut (3:00 Gameplan)- 1) This game is more or less an elimination game in the Big East race. Rutgers has already lost to frontrunner West Virginia, so they can't afford another conference loss. Both teams have just one conference loss, so winning here would be a huge boost to both teams. 2) Brian Leonard and Tres Moses are two of the more explosive player in the Big East. 3) Terry Caulley is the key player in the Huskies offense. If he gets the ball running, the Huskies offense can be tough to contain.

5. TCU at Air Force (3:00 Gameplan)- 1) The Horned Frogs are running away with the Mountain West title. Colorado State is the only other team with less than two conference losses. However, one conference loss by TCU opens the door for a whole slew of teams to get back in the race. 2) Shaun Carney will be looking to get his Falcons to a big home win. They've missed out on a couple of chances this year, but have another chance here. 3) Aaron Brown and Robert Merrills running against the smaller Falcons defense should produce great games.

6. USC at Washington (3:30 ABC/Gameplan)- 1) The Trojans could use a nice easy game. They have had a rough last four games against Oregon, Arizona State, Arizona, and Notre Dame. 2) Reggie Bush, Matt Leinart, and LenDale White have a chance to absolutely explode against a very average Huskies defense. 3) Will USC come mentally prepared to play after last week's nailbiter against Notre Dame? If they don't, and the Huskies can get some early momentum at home, this could turn into one of the biggest upsets in recent memory. The Huskies have put up nice efforts against California and Notre Dame for a little over a quarter, and hung with UCLA for four full quarters.

7. Wyoming at Colorado State (3:00 ESPN Classic)- 1) The Rams are hoping that they can stay around in the Mountain West title chase. They are only one loss behind TCU and have a trip to Fort Worth coming up in a few weeks. 2) The Cowboys are still a very good team. They have lost two in a row, but really could get back on the right track with a win at a very good Colorado State team. 3) Corey Bramlett is one of the more underrated quarterbacks in the country.

8. Vanderbilt at South Carolina (3:30 Gameplan)- 1) More than likely, this is a battle for fourth in the SEC East. The Commodores and Gamecocks both desperately need the win to try to become bowl eligible. 2) Jay Cutler hasn't been playing well lately. He may be due for a huge game. 3) The Gamecocks offense hasn't been explosive this year under Steve Spurrier until the fourth quarter of the Kentucky game. Can they keep the momentum going?

9. BYU at Notre Dame (2:30 NBC)- 1) The Irish are coming off a heartbreaking loss to USC last week. They might not be mentally focused on the Cougars. 2) Brady Quinn is a darn good quarterback. The Cougars defense has been playing well lately, especially last weekend against Colorado State. 3) John Beck is another quarterback that doesn't get the respect he deserves. Of course, he is throwing the ball to Todd Watkins, which sure makes things easier.

10. Florida State at Duke (3:30 ESPNU)- 1) Florida State is trying to bounce back from their loss last week at Virginia. Duke normally is the cure for that. 2) Doesn't it seem like the Blue Devils always either hang around in a game or pull off the upset in a game that they have no business doing it during the second half of the season? Is this that game this year? 3) Where have running backs Leon Washington and Lorenzo Booker been for the Seminoles? They are averaging combined about 17 carries a game. Given that they are both future NFL backs, this is not enough touches.

11. East Carolina at Memphis (3:30 CSTV)- 1) This is a pretty important game in the East Division of Conference USA. The Pirates have just one conference loss and are tied for the division lead. The Tigers have two conference losses and are just behind those four tied at the top. 2) DeAngelo WIlliams is one of the country's best running backs. It is too bad he plays on a team like Memphis because we all deserve to get to se him more. 3) Skip Holtz is doing one of the best jobs in the country making this Pirates team competitive. A win over the Tigers in Memphis could establish the Pirates as a serious contender for the division title.

Late Afternoon

1. Oregon State at UCLA (7:00 TBS)- 1) The Bruins are unbeaten, but have been severly tested the last three weeks against Washington, Washington State, and California. Can they continue along their unbeaten path? 2) The Beavers stunned California in Berkley last Saturday afternoon. Can they possibly do the same thing to the Bruins this Saturday and thrust themselves back into the Pac Ten race? 3) Maurice Drew is one of the best (if not the best) all-purpose back in the country.

2. West Virginia at South Florida (7:00 ESPNU)- 1) Anybody else remember what the Bulls did the last time they played a home game? Only demolish the preseason Big East favorite, Louisville. Now, they look to do the same to the current Big East favorite. 2) The Mountaineers are lead by Steve Slatton running the ball. He should put up nice numbers on the ground. 3) How high will the Mountaineers be after their win against Louisville? Will they be flat after the triple overtime thriller?

3. Baylor at Oklahoma (7:00 FSN)- 1) If you are an Oklahoma fan, you better be a little concerned about this game. Baylor has been playing very well this year (for Baylor), while the Sooners have been underachieving. This looks like a classic spot for a huge upset, but the Sooners still have much more talent. 2) Adrian Peterson is not at full strength and Rhett Bomar is just average on offense. The Sooners could struggle to move the ball against a fairly sturdy Baylor defense. 3) Shawn Bell is a good quarterback, but will be seriously tested by a good Oklahoma defense.

4. Penn State at Illinois (7:00 ESPN2)- 1) The Nittany Lions need to bounce back quick from last week's tough loss because they still are in control of their Big Ten championship hopes. 2) Ron Zook could use a nice win over a ranked team to get his tenure at Illinois off the ground. Zook had success at Florida getting his team prepared to play when nobody expected them to be able to win. This is one of those games. 3) Illinois' offense has been struggling in Big Ten play. Penn State's defense is among the best in the country. Good luck with that, Illini.

5. Florida Atlantic at Arkansas State (7:00 Gameplan)- 1) These Sun Belt games are slowly becoming some of the more entertaining games in the country. Are they as talented as the big name programs? No way. Are they putting on great shows? Yes they are. 2) Arkansas State gave up a ton of rushing yards last week to Louisiana-Lafayette. However, the Owls are still looking to get their running game going. 3) Arkansas State is right in the running for the wide open Sun Belt title. They sit just one game behind conference leader Louisiana-Monroe.

6. Utah at UNLV (7:00 ABC/Gameplan)- 1) Who would have guessed that this would be a match-up where the loser would be all alone in the basement of the Mountain West? Utah has lost three straight games suddenly and finds themselves where they did not expect to be. 2) Quinton Ganther and Brian Johnson have been playing very well for the Utes offense. They just haven't quite put it all together yet for that one monster game. Could this be it? 3) Jarrod Jackson has been doing OK for the Rebels at quarterback. The offensive line isn't doing a great job and the deep ball has been a non-threat, but Jackson has been completing passes and making a few things happen.

7. Hawaii at San Jose State (6:00 Gameplan)- 1) Colt Brennan got on a roll last week for the Warriors. He needs to keep it going this week and keep his momentum going with huge games coming up against Fresno State and Nevada. 2) The San Jose State offense has some serious flaws. Still, what defense would you want to play to figure out your offensive flaws? Clearly, Hawaii is up near the top of that list. 3) Hawaii is notoriously bad on the road, and the Spartans have won one of their two home games.

Evening

1. Auburn at LSU (7:45 ESPN)- 1) This is the first game of the round robin that will determine the SEC West title. Both teams still have Alabama on their schedule. 2) Auburn's Brandon Cox has been playing well since that opening night debacle against Georgia Tech. Of course, the Tigers haven't played anyone of note since then. LSU's pass defense has been questionable this year at times, so Cox may have a shot to put some nice numbers on the board against them. 3) It's LSU. It's a night game. It's a big game on a Saturday. What more could you want? Well, it certainly doesn't hurt things any that LSU's high powered offense is going up against Auburn's rock solid defense. Wow. This one ought to be fun.

2. Marshall at UTEP (9:00 i/PAX)- 1) This has potential to be the preview of the Conference USA Championship Game. Marshall and UTEP both are currently tied in the loss column atop their divisions in C-USA. 2) Jordan Palmer and Marcus Thomas give UTEP a lot of explosion on the offensive side of the ball. They need to keep the ball moving and put up some points on a pretty good Marshall defense. 3) Ahmad Bradshaw and the Thundering Herd running game haven't been great, but he is good enough to put up huge numbers in any game that he plays. UTEP's defense hasn't exactly proven to be a brick wall this year.

Late Night

1. Washington State at California (10:15 FSN)- 1) California's quarterback, Joe Ayoob, has been struggling lately. However, the Cougars defense might be just the solution to the problem. 2) Washington State's offense is absolutely explosive. Jerome Harrison is as good of a running back as there is in the Pac Ten. Cal's defense isn't bad, either, though. 3) Marshawn Lynch was benched during the second half last week. Can he bounce back with a big performance?

2. New Mexico at San Diego State (10:00 Gameplan)- 1) The winner of this game will be 3-2 in conference play, which will put them no worse than a tie for third at the end of the day, and in second if Colorado State loses to Wyoming. 2) DonTrell Moore got the job done against Wyoming last week. He's one of the more underrated running backs in the country and a load of fun to watch. 3) Kevin O'Connell seems to have grown into a solid quarterback for the Aztecs. He did nothing but make huge plays last weekend to help them stun Utah.

One Liners
Very quick preview of Thursday night's games.

Virginia Tech at Maryland (7:45 ESPN)- The Hokies and the Terrapins are both holding out ACC Championship dreams. Maryland would love to put an end to Virginia Tech's dream season on national television.

Florida International at Troy (7:30 ESPNU)- Troy is trying to get back into the Sun Belt Conference race after last week's drumming at the hands of Louisaina-Monroe. The Golden Panthers would like to come up with their first win against Division 1-A competition.

For a complete preview of Thursday night's games via the Thursday Night Throwdown, click here.

Week Eight: Wednesday

2005-10-19T09:00:00.000-04:00

Overreaction Wednesday
Getting a little bit crazy and having some knee jerk reactions to last weekend's games.

Florida State is bound and determined to lose at least one more game. They are too inconsistent on offense and don't get the ball into their running backs hands enough to make things happen. Plus, their defense showed a few lapses this weekend. There are road trips to Clemson and Florida still ahead on the schedule, while home dates with Maryland and North Carolina State are both potential landmines.

We will only have two unbeatens at most at the end of the regular season. What are the odds that we have a second consecutive regular season with three teams from major conferences undefeated? We hadn't dealt with that issue in a long time. Better yet, what are the odds that for the second consecutive season the preseason #1 and #2 teams survive unbeaten and play for the national title? In other words, Texas or USC seems to be a near lock to lose at some point. The question is, to who and how?

The Big Ten title still runs through the Ohio State-Michigan game. If both teams win between now and then, that game will likely determine who wins the conference title. Yes, there's still the small factor that Wisconsin will need to drop some more conference games, and Penn State will have to drop one to someone along the way, but the Ohio State-Michigan game is still the most important game in the Big Ten.

Conference USA has been turned upside down. UTEP and Tulsa appear prepared to battle it out for the West title, but there is no better conference race (outside of the wild Big Ten) than the Conference USA East title. Southern Miss, UCF, Marshall, and East Carolina all have one conference loss. UAB and Memphis each have two. Ummm...somebody sort this out for everyone please!

Don't be so quick to discount Vanderbilt just yet. Yes, they have lost three straight games to Middle Tennessee, LSU, and Georgia. But they were close against LSU and Georgia with just a few more breaks. They will be favored against Kentucky, and have looked better than South Carolina so far, so that should get them to six wins. However, they may have enough to become a very serious threat to either Tennessee or Florida unless they start playing better. The Vols and Gators both have looked very weak lately, and the Commodores would love nothing more than to knock off one of those giants.

Remember that some of these things are gross overreactions to the way teams played this weekend. These are not necessarily straight predictions, but rather thoughts that many may not consider that are very distinct possibilities.

News & Notes

Urban Meyer has stated that Chris Leak will remain the starting quarterback and will not be replaced by freshman Josh Portis. Remember three years ago when Leak very publicly switched his commitment from Tennessee to Florida? At the time, this was seen as a huge blow to the Vols. Now, Leak is being questioned about whether or not he should be the starter on his team. While he may be better than any quarterback the Vols have, the demise of Chris Leak (particularly under the guidance of Urban Meyer) has been quite rapid.

Hurricane Wilma is pounding down on South Florida, thus making it tough to tell if either West Virginia's visit to South Florida or Georgia Tech's road date at Miami will be able to come off. The game could be moved. Expect announcements on both games sometime today.

Quotables

Mike Leach, Texas Tech's head coach: "It used to that our non-conference was several bowl teams, and we just changed it around and decided to try out and see what some of the other guys were doing. The biggest thing was to get home games after we expanded the stadium and playing in front of the home fans. This is one of our better teams we have had, and we're older on defense with some more experience that we have had. We have a pretty talented group of receivers who have been gaining experience rapidly. This could shape up as one of our best teams; it remains to be seen as we continue the season."

Jeff Tedford, California's head coach: "They played better than we did. Bad game plan- got to give our guys more of a chance to be successful and today it was obvious in the run game that they were more physical than we were and out coached in the run game."

Al Groh, Virginia's head coach: "What we talked about last week is that we didn't really care what anybody said about us, and we don't really care this week. We just know what we have to do this week to keep it going. What we care about is winning and losing and staying together as a team and trying to play the kind of sound, solid, tough, aggressive ball that we like to think is our trademark. The season was pretty early still last week at that stage. It's really still pretty early; we're only at the halfway mark. And, I think at that stage it's too early to get hyped up about if you've got a great team, and it's a little pre-mature to be running around like Chicken Little saying, 'The sky is falling.'"

Rant of the Week

Again, there were several great rants last week. But this one took the cake...wedding cake that is! It deals with an issue near and dear to every college football fan during this treacherous time of year.

Why oh why do people plan weddings during the college football season? I buy season tickets every year for my team and it never fails that two or three wedding invitations find my box. Newsflash- college football is way more important than your stupid wedding. Am I alone in this? STOP planning wedding dates in college football season, please for the love of god. Guys take a stand for all other guys out there that you are inviting to your wedding. And don't get all girly when I tell you I would rather watch college football. June weddings are really nice. Maybe try early spring. PLEASE.

Chris Williams
Dallas, Texas

Chris, I can relate. This Saturday, I have a wedding that I have to go to in the morning. Fortunately, due to modern technology and the early start time of the wedding, I won't miss too much of the action. I would like to say congratulations to Kate and Pat and I am very happy they will be getting married this Saturday, but couldn't you have waited until, I don't know, the second Saturday in December after college football was over? Of course, I'm only kidding...but Chris from Dallas might not be...

Week Eight: Tuesday

2005-10-18T09:00:00.000-04:00

Under Pressure
Randy Sanders, Tennessee

It is not often that a coordinator gets put in this category (happened only once in the first seven weeks this year), but is Randy Sanders ever feeling the pressure. Phillip Fulmer seems to have a pass for the team's bad offensive efforts, so Sanders seems to be getting most of the heat coming out of Knoxville for the team's downright offensive performances on offense. A team with this much talent should not be struggling this much on offense. A strong performance against a rock solid Alabama defense might be enough to hold off the sharks for a little while longer. He better hope that the Vols execution gets much much better.

Brandon Cox, Auburn

The Tigers quarterback has been doing a good job, but he hasn't faced any really good defense since the Georgia Tech game. He'll be facing at least the most hostile atmosphere in his young career as a starting quarterback when he heads to Baton Rouge this Saturday night. It will be on Saturday night in Baton Rouge, and everyone knows how tough that atmosphere can be. Can he produce with all that will be on the line? The SEC West title will be up for grabs when these two square off. The winner will become the primary challenger to Alabama for the title.

College Gameday Site
Austin, Texas

The Gameday crew will be in Texas for the Longhorns toughest challenge to date, other than Ohio State. The Longhorns have responded valiantly the past several weeks when tested. This weeks game against Texas Tech ought to be interesting. The Red Raiders offense will pose a very serious challenge to the Longhorns stout defense. If the Red Raiders can begin to slow down Vince Young and the Texas Longhorns offense, then they might have a shot. This ought to be a very enjoyable shootout, and it makes sense that Gameday would be there for a match-up of unbeatens happening in late October.

Thoughts on the Rankings

It's BACK! And this time...well, I guess there's not as much controversy as there has been in the past. USC and Texas sit in the top two spots, which is where most of America has them. Virginia Tech is next in line, which is right where most of America has them.

The most surprising thing could be how highly ranked Texas Tech is. They are number seven in the rankings, which is higher than the Harris or USA Today rankings have them. They are painstakingly close to LSU for the number six spot. That Texas-Texas Tech game this weekend just got bigger, as a Red Raiders win could conceivably jump them all the way to number two or three.

Of course, Notre Dame being ranked number fifteen seems awfully low. But computers can't watch football games, and since margin of victory is not taken into account in any of the computers, those computers really have no idea that Notre Dame played USC so close. The computers have Notre Dame ranked #25.

The biggest beneficiaries of the computers appear to be Oregon and Wisconsin. They are ranked #13 and #14, respectively. Oregon is tied for ninth in the computer rankings, while Wisconsin is ranked number eight.

Four computers vote USC number one, one votes for Texas, and one votes for Georgia. In the rankings where Georgia is number, USC is number two, Alabama is number three, Texas is number four, Penn State is number five, and Virginia Tech is number six. Maybe we can train this computer to watch football...

In general, I do not have problems with the computers being used. They do take bias out of the equation in terms of certain teams. They definitely are not perfect, but I basically think that they accomplish what they are supposed to. My one thought is that I think margin of victory should be factored in, at least up to a point. No, it doesn't matter if you win by 35 or 42 points. However, there is a difference between getting beat by USC by 46 the way Hawaii did and by three the way Notre Dame did. Yet, the computer does not distinguish between these two because they are both home losses to USC. That's my reason for wanting margin of victory included in the computer rankings, with a cap going on at 20 points.

My Rankings

This past weekend was maybe the most exciting weekend anyone has ever seen in college football. It seemed like every game came down to the very last minute. Everywhere you turned, great games were following great games. It was absolutely amazing. Currently, I have five very good teams that are not ranked. Arizona State, Colorado, Nebraska, Wisconsin, and Minnesota all remain unranked this week. There is slowly getting to be too many teams that deserve to be ranked right now. Heck, up and down Michigan isn't even on the list. Without further ado, here is the new Top 25, with last week's rank in parentheses.

1. USC 6-0 (1)
2. Texas 6-0 (2)
3. Virginia Tech 6-0 (3)
4. Georgia 6-0 (5)
5. Alabama 6-0 (4)
6. UCLA 6-0 (8)
7. Miami, FL 5-1 (10)
8. LSU 6-1 (12)
9. Notre Dame 4-2 (9)
10. Florida State 5-1 (6)
11. Penn State 6-1 (7)
12. Ohio State 4-2 (13)
13. Texas Tech 6-0 (15)
14. Auburn 5-1 (16)
15. Boston College 6-1 (17)
16. Oregon 6-1 (20)
17. Florida 5-2 (11)
18. Michigan State 4-2 (14)
19. Virginia 4-2 (--)
20. Tennessee 3-2 (19)
21. Oregon State 4-2 (--)
22. West Virginia 6-1 (--)
23. California 5-2 (18)
24. TCU 6-1 (22)
25. Fresno State 4-1 (--)

Dropped Out: Colorado 4-2 (21), Minnesota 5-2 (23), Arizona State 3-3 (24), Louisville 4-2 (25).
The Buffaloes were absolutely humiliated by Texas. Minnesota was stunned in the final seconds by Wisconsin. Louisville still has not proven that they can perform on the road after their loss in Morgantown to West Virginia. Arizona State dropped out because they may not be even the most deserving three loss team (Michigan could be because they have more impressive wins, but Arizona State has played a very tough schedule).

Biggest drop by a team still in the rankings: 6- Florida. The Gators may have taken a 17-14 lead against LSU, but the Gators did not look good doing it. Truly, the Gators have looked so average in their last three games and their one good win (Tennessee) may or may not be a good win, that their ranking may be generous. The Gators have just been very unimpressive as of late.

Smallest drop by a team that lost: 0- Notre Dame. The Irish came so close against USC. How can you drop them for that performance? It is pretty tough. There are questions about the Irish (they are now 0-2 at home), but for this week, it is impossible to question them and their rank.

Biggest drop by a team that won: 2- TCU. Really, the Horned Frogs dropped two spots just because so many other teams performed so well that they had to jump up. Oregon State, Virginia, and West Virginia all had impressive wins over ranked teams, and those were the only teams that jumped them. When you beat Army, I guess you run the risk of falling in a situation like that.

Biggest jump by a team that was in my rankings last week: 4- Oregon. So this may be a bit of a big jump, but the fact is that Oregon has been playing better than Florida, Michigan State, Tennessee, and California in recent weeks. The Ducks deserve to be ahead of all those teams.

So, why is USC still #1? This is a good question. However, if you watched the Notre Dame-USC game, you'd realize that all those ghosts were out in full force. I've never watched a game at Notre Dame where it was so obvious that the Irish had everything going their way and they still lost. This just does not happen in South Bend. I will be watching very closely to see if Texas or Virginia Tech deserves to jump them in the coming weeks.

Week Eight: Monday

2005-10-17T09:00:00.000-04:00

WEEKEND IN REVIEW

Game of the Week
USC 34, Notre Dame 31

It was one of the most hyped games of the year and it lived up to the hype. Matt Leinart pounded in from a yard away with just three seconds left to give the Trojans the three point lead. Notre Dame had taken the 31-28 lead on a great drive lead by Brady Quinn. The Trojans jumped out to a 14-7 lead, but trailed 21-14 at the half. But there was no dominating second half this time around. The Irish continued to play ball control and keep the Trojans off the field. The Trojans faced a fourth and nine with just a minute a half left that if they had not converted, they would have lost. There was a split second where it appeared that the Irish had won as the clock ran out, but the referees had clearly been waving their hands to stop the clock because the ball had been fumbled out of bounds. If Leinart had not fumbled out of bounds, the game would have been over. It was truly a great game on a weekend full of great games.

Upset of the Week
West Virginia 46, Louisville 44 (3 OT)

This wasn't a huge upset, but the Cardinals were ahead 24-7 about halfway through the fourth quarter, when Terry Bowden said, "This was just the kind of game that Louisville needed to get back on the right track." Spoke too soon, Mr. Bowden. Steve Slaton lead the comeback on the ground, and the Mountaineers thrilled their fans with a dramatic win in triple overtime. The Mountaineers now have to be considered the favorites in the Big East, while the Cardinals, the preseason mortal lock to earn the conference's BCS bowl bid, are off to an 0-2 start in the conference. Not exactly what the Cardinals had in mind when they moved to the Big East in the offseason. Their road struggles continue.

Team of the Week
Texas Longhorns

That was one heck of an easy win for the Longhorns. The Colorado game was yet another game that was supposed to be a trap game for these Longhorns, and yet Texas disposed of the Buffaloes with ease, 42-17. The game was never in doubt. Texas simply rolled a very good Colorado team. With Texas Tech coming up this weekend, a battle of unbeatens ought to be very entertaining.

Player of the Week
Vince Young, Texas

Young had a Heisman Trophy-like performance against Colorado. He completed 25 of 29 passes for 336 yards and two touchdowns. He also ran the ball ten times for 58 yards and three touchdowns. The Longhorns quarterback single handedly beat the Buffaloes. The Longhorns look more and more like a team on a mission to prove that they will not be deterred from the business trip that they are on. Young was absolutely spectacular.

Stat of the Week
643 passing yards

Cody Hodges of Texas Tech absolutely lit up the Kansas State defense. He completed 44 of 65 passes for 643 yards and five touchdowns. The total passing yards were the fourth highest in Division 1-A history. Of course, the Red Raiders were throwing the ball all day, but Kansas State kept on hanging around and hanging around. Hodges certainly had a magnificent game. If he didn't play for Texas Tech, he would be in the heart of the Heisman Trophy race right now.

Play of the Week
Wisconsin blocked a punt for a touchdown

The Badgers blocked a punt against Minnesota in the final thirty seconds and recovered it in the endzone to come up with a dramatic 38-34 win. Justin Kucek dropped the snap and tried to pick it up. When he got the punt away, Jonathan Cassilas was right there to block it and Ben Strickland recovered in the endzone. It was one of the most incredible plays in the 115 year history of the rivalry. It was truly a remarkable game.

Turnover of the Week
Tony Franklin intercepted Drew Weatherford

Franklin intercepted Weatherford's pass with 56 seconds left to seal Virginia's 26-21 win over Florida State. The Seminoles had been mounting a heck of a comeback just to get back into the game. They were within five, and many people must have felt like the Seminoles were bound to drive down the field for the winning score. However, Franklin picked off the pass and sealed the win and set off a wild celebration in Charlottesville.

Key First Half Moment of the Week
Ashton Youboty's blocked field goal return for a touchdown

The Ohio State Buckeyes had not played well in the first half at all. They trailed 17-7 and the Spartans were driving. Drew Stanton ran up to the line to spike the ball, but got called off the field for the field goal unit as time was ticking down to ten seconds left in the half. Finally, the field goal unit got set up, but they only had ten men on the field, which left a wide open left side to come in and block the John Goss kick. Nate Salley was the one who blocked it. Ashton Youboty picked it up and ran it in from 72 yards away. The score at the half was now just 17-14. The momentum carried over to the second half, and while the Spartans did not fold, the Buckeyes seemed to have the upper hand for the rest of the game.

Moment of the Week
How about that 45 minutes of the week?

As the 3:30 games came down on the end, all of them were heart stoppers. From around 7:00 Eastern to around 7:45 Eastern, great game after great game came to a close. Penn State lost on the last play to Michigan, 27-25. LSU held on against Florida, 21-17. Oregon State stunned California, 23-20. USC came back against Notre Dame, 34-31. West Virginia beat Louisville in triple overtime, 46-44. With all of these marquee games coming to an end, and all of them in dramatic fashion, it was hard to keep up. This weekend, above all others, was proof of why every college football fan should have ESPN Gameplan.

Week Seven: Friday

2005-10-14T09:00:00.000-04:00

WEEKEND STARS
Thoughts on who the stars of the weekend will be.

Game of the Week- USC at Notre Dame- The Irish are traditionally quite strong at home. It would be quite the upset to beat the Trojans at home. USC is huge favorites in this game, are #1, and come in riding that long winning streak. Notre Dame is where streaks come to die in the past. However, this Trojan team has proven time and again that they can win in these situations. This would be a win to really kick start the Charlie Weis era at Notre Dame. This would be a very important win for the Trojans on their way to (what they hope to be) a third straight national title.

Upset Special- UCLA at Washington State- Let's not forget how explosive the Cougars have been offensively. They have the offensive firepower to hang in this game for the full sixty minutes. UCLA is coming off a dramatic home win, and under Karl Dorrell, the Bruins have always lost a game they have no business losing. They've avoided that upset bug so far this year, and a win in this game would go a long way to prove that they have matured and deserve to be in the Top Ten.

Team of the Week- Alabama Crimson Tide- Alabama is heading to Ole Miss to face a Rebels team that has looked average at best so far this year. Ole Miss has really struggled. Alabama is coming off an off week and will be looking to prove that they deserve to be in the Top Five and that they can still make plays on offense even without Tyrone Prothro. It will not be an easy game to win in Oxford (a nationally televised win at home would really get the Ed Orgeron era rolling), but the Tide should be very impressive in how they perform.

Players of the Week-
1) Laurence Maroney, Minnesota- So the Golden Gophers just beat Michigan for the first time in a very long time. Now they face a very soft Wisconsin defense. If Tyrell Sutton ripped through the Badgers defense, then what will Maroney do? (Yes, Sutton is a great player, but if he ran for 200 yards, Maroney may run for 250 or 300.)
2) Kyle Wright, Miami- Temple is who teams play when they want their quarterback to gain some confidence. Wright should gain plenty of confidence in this one against the Owls.
3) LenDale White, USC- People thought I was joking when I started telling people after the Oregon game that White might deserve to be in the Heisman Trophy running. After the last two weeks, very few are laughing anymore. He should run for lots of yards against Notre Dame.
4) Cody Hodges, Texas Tech- Kansas State's defense made Rhett Bomar look pretty good a couple of weeks ago. While the K-State defense isn't bad, Hodges has put up huge numbers all year. This time, it will be on ABC, which will earn him even more respect.
5) Vince Young, Texas- If the Longhorns are to survive a trap game with Colorado, Young will have to play the way he's been playing lately. Colorado's defense is pretty good, but it is tough to contain Vince Young. Eventually, he'll come up with one way or another to beat you.

THURSDAY REVIEW
Very quick recap of Thursday's games.

Clemson 31, North Carolina State 10- How good are these two teams? Talk about Jekyll and Hyde. For Clemson, Whitehurst was sharp and the running game was very impressive. Clemson got back to playing the way they were early in the season. With Temple and Duke coming up in two of their next three games and a road trip to Georgia Tech smashed in between, a bowl game becomes a very real proposition again. Once again, the Tigers looked like a team capable of upsetting Florida State when they come to town on November 12.

Arkansas State 39, Louisiana-Lafayette 36- So the Indians came from behind and won on a field goal as time expired. Nick Noce proved that he is a clutch quarterback. But there has to be serious concern that the Ragin' Cajuns put up 457 rushing yards on this defense. With North Texas, Middle Tennessee, and Troy still ahead on the schedule, they have got to shore up that rush defense.

ONE LINERS
Incredibly basic previews of tonight's games.

UTEP at Tulane (8:00 ESPN)- Both teams have a ton of talent on the offensive side of the ball. This is a key game in the Conference USA West race. UTEP is the favorite, but Tulane is one of the challengers. The Green Wave will play much better than they played in last week's loss to Houston. Lester Ricard and Jordan Palmer are the two quarterbacks, and both should have big games.

Week Seven: Thursday

2005-10-13T21:00:00.000-04:00

Viewer's Guide

Which games should you watch this weekend? What games should you be keeping your eyes on during each time period? We've got it all worked out for you.

The day is divided into five parts. Some are more unequal than others due to the start time of the games.All times are Eastern. The time periods are early games (start time before 2:00), afternoon (start time from 2:15-5:00), late afternoon (start time from 5:15-7:15), evening (start time from 7:30-9:45), and late night (start time after 10:00). The games are ranked by time period and give you a couple of reasons to watch each game, whether it is questions that need to be answered or something else altogether. The games are the games listed on CollegeFootballNews.com as the television games for this weekend. Only Saturday games are included.

Let's get it started!

Early Games

1. Michigan State at Ohio State (12:00 ABC/Gameplan)- 1) Drew Stanton and the explosive Spartans offense will be battling a very talented A.J. Hawk and Ohio State's dominant defense. This should be an entertaining battle. 2) This looks like the type of defense that Ted Ginn Jr. and Troy Smith could have a big game against. 3) The Spartans are looking to show that they are for real. Ohio State is looking to stay alive in the Big Ten title race. This is a huge game to the Big Ten.

2. Kansas State at Texas Tech (12:00 ABC/Gameplan)- 1) Cody Hodges and a great Texas Tech offense will be looking to prove themselves in front of a live television audience that is desperately trying to figure out just how good the Red Raiders are. 2) The Wildcats are 4-1, but are popularly considered a major pretender. A win against the Red Raiders would go a long way to prove that they are for real. 3) Kansas State's defense stepped up last week against Kansas. They better do it again, because the Red Raiders will hang 70 on the Wildcats if they can.

3. Wisconsin at Minnesota (12:00 ESPN)- 1) The Badgers were upset last week by Northwestern because they couldn't slow down Tyrell Sutton and the Wildcats running game. Hello, Laurence Maroney. 2) Brian Calhoun is still a very good running back. John Stocco is making more plays offensively than he has made in his career at Wisconsin. This offense has finally gelled. 3) Both teams have a conference loss. That alone is not enough to knock them out of the title chase. A win in this game puts the winner right back in the race for the BCS bowl bid.

4. Alabama at Mississippi (12:00 CBS)- 1) Ed Orgeron would love for his team to get that defining home win to kick start his time in Oxford. Alabama could be ripe for the picking. 2) Brodie Croyle begins his life after Tyrone Prothro. Croyle is a great quarterback and has a chance to sneak into the Heisman Trophy discussion with some big games down the stretch, but will he suffer without his biggest playmaker? 3) Alabama is back on national TV. Next weeks game against Tennessee has to be in the back of their minds. A poor performance, even in a win, against Ole Miss could be damaging if they want to get to the Rose Bowl.

5. Wake Forest and Boston College (12:00 JP/Gameplan)- 1) Talk about a strange game. Wake Forest has looked much better lately. Boston College has looked OK all year. This game is big for both teams. Wake needs it to keep up bowl hopes and BC needs it to keep up ACC Championship hopes (which grow dimmer with each Florida State win). 2) Cory Randolph is an exciting quarterback, and he did a good job against Florida State's defense. Can he do the same against Boston College's solid defense? 3) The BC passing game should match up well with Wake Forest. Quinton Porter should have a very nice day for the Eagles.

6. Northwestern at Purdue (12:00 ESPN2)- 1) That Wildcats offense is explosive. Brett Basanez? Tyrell Sutton? Both should have incredible games against a very shaky Purdue defense. 2) Brandon Kirsch can also be expected to explode against a very questionable Northwestern defense. 3) Northwestern can hold out dreams for a Big Ten championship season, but they probably need to win out to have any chance of it happening. That's a tall order. Purdue's hopes for a good bowl game mean that they must win now as well.

7. Colorado State at BYU (2:00 Gameplan)- 1) The Rams win against Utah last week announced to anyone who was paying attention that Colorado State plans on being in the hunt for the Mountain West title. With Wyoming followed by trips to New Mexico and TCU coming up the next three weeks after this one, this game becomes a huge trap game for the Rams. 2) Justin Holland is a talented quarterback that is finally getting some support from the running game of the Rame. 3) BYU's stirring come from behind win against New Mexico has them hoping for the Mountain West title as well. John Beck has won the Mountain West Offensive Player of the Week two of the last three weeks.

8. Indiana at Iowa (12:00 Gameplan)- 1) Do the Hawkeyes ever lose at home? Do they ever lose after their beginning of the year struggles? 2) The Hoosiers really need to pull off an upset to keep their early season momentum going in the right direction. (By the way, who would have guessed before the season that the Hoosiers (4-1) would have a better record than the Hawkeyes (3-2) heading into this game?) 3) Blake Powers has come as the Hoosiers quarterback and really played well so far this year. He may just be this year's Drew Tate of the Big Ten (a sophomore quarterback that soars onto the scene).

9. Rutgers at Syracuse (12:00 Gameplan)- 1) That solid Syracuse defense goes against a pretty good Rutgers offense. Ryan Hart, Tres Moses and Brian Lonard still are explosive, but the Orange defense has been tough. 2) At 1-1 in conference play, Rutgers needs a win to keep alive their hopes for a Big East title. 3) Damien Rhodes has been slowed down this year for the Orange, but he still is an explosive running back.

10. Miami, FL at Temple (1:00 FSN)- 1) Will the Owls start playing better now that Bobby Wallace will be gone at the end of the year? Will they try to win some games for their outgoing coach? 2) Just how many points can the 'Canes put up on Temple? It seems like every week someone else is hanging 60 on them. Kyle Wright has to be licking his chops to get a run at this defense. 3) Temple seems to come up with one game every year that they hang around in far longer than they should. Will this be that game this year?

11. UNLV at Air Force (2:00 Gameplan)- 1) Shaun Carney is a very good quarterback for the Falcons and he makes the whole team fun to watch. 2) Can UNLV keep the momentum of last week's win going? 3) If Air Force really thinks they can get to a bowl game, they had better win this game. Plus, UNLV has played a lot of close games this year, which ought to make this one entertaining.

12. Kent State at Navy (1:30 CSTV)- 1) Navy needs a win to stay on track for another bowl bid. 2) Navy won a great game against Air Force last week. Can they keep the momentum going? 3) The Flashes are lead by a passing game that has been very explosive at times this year. They've come up just short on a couple of second half comebacks the last two weeks and would love to win and start setting things right.

Afternoon

1. USC at Notre Dame (3:30 NBC)- 1) You know you want to see if there is some magic left on that magical Notre Dame field. Notre Dame tends to win home games like this when they are "back." This could be the determining factor. 2) Notre Dame's defense has been suspect, which is not good when you have to slow down Matt Leinart, Reggie Bush, and LenDale White. 3) The Irish have had two weeks to prepare. With how good Brady Quinn has been this year, how will he perform against a somewhat questionable USC defense?

2. Florida at LSU (3:30 CBS)- 1) This is virtually an elimination game in the SEC title race. The loser will have two conference losses, which will likely put them two games behind the leader in their division. 2) Chris Leak going against the highly suspect LSU pass defense could make for a very interesting game. 3) How will Florida do on the road? That loss at Alabama was their first real road test. How will LSU handle playing their first home game since the debacle against Tennessee a couple of weeks ago?

3. Colorado at Texas (3:30 ABC/Gameplan)- 1) Joel Klatt is highly underrated around the country as the Buffaloes quarterback. 2) The Longhorns have been on upset alert for weeks now. At some point, do they become numb to that and actually let a team like Colorado hang around with them? 3) Vince Young is one of the Heisman Trophy favorites right now. He needs to keep it up against a pretty good Buffaloes defense.

4. Penn State at Michigan (3:30 ABC/Gameplan)- 1) So, wait a minute. Penn State is unbeaten and in the Top Ten. Michigan has three losses and is out of the Top 25. Yet, the Wolverines are the favorite? Weird. 2) Mike Hart and the Wolverines offense will be going against the ultra-talented Penn State defense. 3) Michael Robinson has slowly developed into a quarterback that opponents in the Big Ten do not want to face.

5. Louisville at West Virginia (3:30 ABC/Gameplan)- 1) While South Florida and Connecticut may have something to say about it, this game appears to be the Big East Championship Game. 2) How will the Cardinals perform on the road? They barely got past a bad Kentucky team in their first road game and then got plastered by South Florida in their second road game. 3) Brian Brohm and Michael Bush against a very very good West Virginia defense. That ought to be fun.

6. New Mexico at Wyoming (3:00 Gameplan)- 1) Suddenly, the Lobos are 3-3 with two conference losses. They still are one of the more dangerous non-BCS teams out there. 2) The Cowboys got beat by Florida and were handled surprisingly easily by TCU at home. To keep their conference title hopes alive, they really need to win this game. 3) DonTrell Moore is one of the more underrated running backs in the country.

7. Oregon State at California (3:30 ABC/Gameplan)- 1) The Beavers have looked awful in their one road game so far this year. At some point, they are going to need to win a road game or two if they are going to get to a bowl game. 2) Cal is coming off a very disheartening loss to UCLA. Still Joe Ayoob and Marshawn Lynch showed how explosive this offense can be. Against an average Oregon State defense, that ought to make for a lot of yards and a lot of points. 3) Both teams still hold dreams of a Pac Ten championship. With no USC on Oregon State's schedule, they can harbor dreams of 7-1 in the Pac Ten. With only one really tough road game remaining (against Oregon), California can hope for 7-1 in the Pac Ten...and the tiebreaker over USC with a head-to-head win. Neither team is out of it yet.

8. Memphis at Houston (5:00 CSTV)- 1) The Cougars and Tigers are both right in the thick of their Conference USA division races. Houston is 3-2 and 2-1 in conference play. All they need is a little bit of help from someone else knocking off UTEP and they are in control of their own destiny. 2) Kevin Kolb and the Houston offense is explosive. If you haven't watched Houston's offense, you're missing out. 3) DeAngelo Williams is Memphis' offense and is explosive all by himself. If you haven't watched Williams play, you're missing out.

9. Georgia Tech at Duke (3:30 ESPNU)- 1) Oh! So this is when Duke almost always seems to jump up and bite somebody! The Yellow Jackets are still reeling from a tough loss against North Carolina State. Duke loves to catch teams that aren't focused. Are the Yellow Jackets focused? 2) P.J. Daniels is one of the better running backs in the ACC. 3) Now, Reggie Ball had an awful game against NC State. That means that this week he is going to explode. Thus is life with Reggie Ball.

10. UAB at Marshall (5:00 i/PAX)- 1) UAB needs a win to get back on track in their race for the Conference USA East Division title. Marshall isn't out of the race yet either, with only one confernce loss. This could be an elimination game in the race. 2) Darrell Hackney is one of the better quarterbacks in the country. He doesn't get a lot of respect nationally, but he deserves more. 3) Marshall played well against Kansas State and hung with Virginia Tech for a half. Maybe the Thundering Herd are better than we all think.

11. Troy at Lousiana-Monroe (3:30 Gameplan)- 1) Sun Belt! Sun Belt! Sun Belt! Oh that crazy Sun Belt is so much fun! This is a match-up of the two remaining teams in the conference that haven't lost a conference game yet. New Orleans Bowl to the winner? 2) Troy's offense, particularly passing the ball, has struggled mightily. What happens if ULM jumps out to an early lead? 3) As strange as it seems, Steven Jyles is a better player than he gets credit for. Jyles is a pretty good quarterback and may find some success against the stout Troy defense.

Late Afternoon

1. UCLA at Washington State (6:00 FSN)- 1) It's a trap! It's a trap! The Bruins are coming off a very emotional win over California to announce their presence on a national scale. The Cougars are coming off back-to-back disappointing losses. This game is ripe for an upset. 2) If Maurice Drew has another huge game, does he get himself into Heisman consideration? 3) That Washington State offense is explosive. Jerome Harrison and Jason Hill are both great weapons. They should be able to score some points on UCLA's very questionable defense.

2. Georgia at Vanderbilt (7:15 ESPN2)- 1) As strange as this sounds, by the time this game starts (if LSU beats Florida), the winner of this game will have the lead in the SEC East. 2) D.J. Shockley and the Georgia offense has been wildly inconsistent this year. They looked pretty good against Tennessee last week. Do they take this weekend off? 3) Surely Jay Cutler can't have back-to-back games that are THAT bad.

3.Oklahoma at Kansas (7:00 TBS)- 1) The Sooners offense looks like it is coming around little by little. Rhett Bomar looks like a pretty good quarterback. He'll need to against a stout Kansas defense. 2) If the Jayhawks have any intention of getting to a bowl game or winning the North Division, they have to start winning now. This is about as close to a must win game as you get in a situation this early in the year for a team like Kansas. 3) The Sooners are not used to losing. At 2-3, the pressure cooker is getting going in Norman. Can they turn things around?

4. San Diego State at Utah (7:00 ABC/Gameplan)- 1) The Utes suddenly have lost three out of their last four games. The MWC title chance seems to be long gone. But getting back to a bowl game and building for next year are still a possibility for this team. They need a win to get back on track. 2) The Aztecs took a major step back in their race for an bowl game in last week's loss to UNLV. At 2-4, a loss to Utah could all but eliminate them from that race. 3) Kevin O'Connell has been wildly inconsistent as the Aztecs quarterback. Can he be "on" this week against the Utes?

Evening

1. Florida State at Virginia (7:45 ESPN)- 1) The Cavaliers really need to come up with some sort of "signature win" to really announce that they have arrived under Al Groh. They struggled against Miami, Florida State, and Virginia Tech last year. They didn't look particularly good against Boston College last week. Can they finally come up with a good performance on a big stage against Florida State? 2) The 'Noles offense has been getting better and better behind Drew Weatherford the last several weeks. Can he keep it up against a pretty good Virginia defense? 3) The Cavs Marques Hagans is a playmaker. Can he make enough plays against the best defense he has faced this year?

2. San Jose State at Boise State (8:05 Gameplan)- 1) This is a great offense for Boise State, particularly when they get to play at home on the blue turf. Sure, they struggled with Portland State. That could only motivate them more. 2) The Spartans offense is iffy at best. They need to gear it up against Boise State or else they will get run off the field. 3) We all really want to watch Boise State to try to figure out how they will fare against Fresno State on November 12 in the WAC Game of the Year.

Late Night

1. New Mexico State at Hawaii (12:00 Gameplan)- 1) Hal Mumme vs. June Jones. Now this game should feature some offense! 2) Hawaii is off to a bad start, but they always play well on the island, as evidenced by their 44-41 nailbiter against Boise State a couple of weeks ago. 3) New Mexico State could use some momentum to get their season rolling. Playing teams like Fresno State, California, and Colorado to start off the year would make any season get off to a slow start.

One Liners
Very quick previews of tonight's games.

Clemson at North Carolina State (7:30 ESPN)- Clemson started off hot, but has run into problems lately. The Wolfpack saved their season against Georgia Tech last Thursday night. The Pack try to keep their ACC title hopes alive against the Tigers.

Louisiana-Lafayette at Arkansas State (7:30 ESPNU)- Michael Desormeaux is the Ragin' Cajuns quarterback. He struggled last week against Florida Atlantic, and things might not get any better against this darkhorse in the Sun Belt race.

For the full Thursday Night Throwdown, click here.

Week Seven: Wednesday

2005-10-12T09:00:00.000-04:00

Overreaction Wednesday
Getting a little bit crazy and having some knee jerk reactions to last weekend's games.

Indiana and Baylor both are serious threats to get to a bowl game. Both are 4-1. Indiana has a very tough future schedule with Iowa, Ohio State, Michigan State, Minnesota, Michigan, and Purdue. Baylor has Nebraska, Oklahoma, Texas Tech, Texas, Missouri and Oklahoma State. Don't be surprised to see Baylor sitting at 7-4 even, because the Bears are playing in a suddenly very average Big Twelve.

Fresno State could be the toughest test remaining for USC. The Bulldogs will get the Trojans the week after they go to Cal. USC may not be fully focused on the Fresno game. Ask Oregon what happens when you aren't fully focused against the Bulldogs. (Hint: You fall behind 17-0.)

Louisville's two Big East road games against West Virgnia this weekend and Connecticut on December 3 will play a huge role in determining who wins the conference. It would shock no one if the Cardinals lost both of those games based on how they have played on the road this year so far. However, would it really shock anyone if they won both of these games either?

UCF may not be a mortal lock for a bowl game, but they've won three straight, and are the only unbeaten team remaining in Conference USA. A bowl game is well within reach and the Golden Knights probably should reach a bowl game at this point. The question should be if they can win the conference title or not. We'll know a lot more about that after this weekend against Southern Miss.

Remember that some of these things are gross overreactions to the way teams played this weekend. These are not necessarily straight predictions, but rather thoughts that many may not consider that are very distinct possibilities.

News & Notes

The quarterback merry-go-round in Knoxville continues as the word from Vols camp is that Erik Ainge will see some playing time against Alabama on October 22. Every Vol fan has to feel a little dizzy by how quickly things change.

Chris Leak watched Rick Clausen and Sam Keller go crazy against the LSU pass defense, and decided that even a sprained shoulder isn't enough to keep him out of the Gators game with the Tigers this weekend. LSU showed huge strides in that department last weekend against Jay Cutler and Vanderbilt.

Offensive lineman Brad Butler has been suspended for one game for his chop block on Mathias Kiwanuka. Virginia will play host to Florida State. There was a lot made of this play during the game last weekend, as two players eventually got thrown out because of it. However, Butler did not get penalized on the play, despite the fact that it was late and also an illegal block. It is a good call by Al Groh to suspend Butler for that play. Many coaches around America would not do that.

Quotables

Guy Morriss, Baylor's coach: "We haven't been in this position very often. We speak to them as coaches and remind them to tune things out with people patting them on the back while they go to classes. We have spoken to them about focus and preparing for Nebraska."

Mack Brown, Texas' coach: "It was a good win and a fun win over Oklahoma. Our fans had to get bragging rights back after a few years."

Karl Dorrell, UCLA's coach: "It's a great challenge again this week in the Pac Ten. Washington State is dangerous football team and they are even more dangerous in their own backyard. We have to have a great week of preparation and focus to overcome some of the obstacles we will see in this particular game. But it's really going to come down to how we play and how our approach is, which begins with our practice this week."

Rant of the Week

The rants this week were excellent, and it was tough to pick just one. Fans are beginning to get frustrated with their teams, which is understandable at this time of year. There were a lot of great ones to choose from. Here is the one from Brett Young, as he is sick of his Hawkeyes slow starts.

Iowa started the season in the top 15 for the firsttime since they have emerged as a continual BCS bowlteam. Now in typical fashion (which is getting old) they have dropped 2 games early and are starting to"find themselves" again with a impressive victory atPurdue. I am a life long Hawkeye fan and even I amstarting to get confused as to why it takes them 4 or5 games to figure out who they are every year. Iunderstand in the past they had low-level recruits andhad to fill spots, but they have been recruiting wellfor 3 years now and I'm wondering if they will everhave a true identity. I love my Hawks and am notcomplaining about their recent success, just wonderingif you media fellas are a perplexed by this team as Iam starting to be. I honestly don't know where to rankthese guys right now & I'm not sure anybody does.

Brett Young
Sioux Falls, Iowa

Thanks Brett, and thanks everyone that e-mailed me a rant. I thoroughly enjoy reading them. Keep those e-mails coming!

Week Seven: Tuesday

2005-10-11T09:00:00.000-04:00

Under Pressure
Les Miles, LSU

LSU's head coach, Les Miles, has certainly come under fire quickly in Baton Rouge. The shocking loss at home to Tennessee started the ball rolling. People are beginning to question whether or not he can win at a big time program. This week's game against Florida will go a long way to silence the critics...or make them louder. Miles may just be starting his coaching tenure at LSU, but if he wants to be there for long, he needs a solid performance against the Gators. He also needs to make sure that he does not signal for a timeout when there is a change of possession. Those two things would be a nice start for all Tiger fans.

Brian Brohm, Louisville

The sophomore has looked great at home as the Cardinals quarterback. However, put him on the road (like he was against South Florida, and before that Kentucky) and he has looked shaky. This week, the Cardinals could be playing the Big East Championship Game in Morgantown against West Virginia. It would be almost unacceptable for the Cardinals to not win the Big East after all the preseason hype about them. A loss here would almost eliminate them from the conference championship race. Going against a very good West Virginia defense in front of a hostile crowd, this game will show the nation a lot about how mature Brian Brohm is.

College Gameday Site
South Bend, Indiana

It really only makes sense to be at this game this weekend. The USC Trojans head to South Bend to take on the Notre Dame Fighting Irish. It is clearly the premier game of the weekend. However, it will mark the first time this year that the gang is going to a game that is not being televised on ABC or the ESPN family of networks. With some of the great games that have been on CBS already, this is a little surprising. This weekend, there really was no choice. The USC-Notre Dame game was so clearly the marquee game of the day, there was no way to get around going. This is where the show began. Back in 1993, the crew went on the road for the first time to see the number one Florida State Seminoles take on the number two Notre Dame Fighting Irish in South Bend. The show was struggling at that point. Being there in front of everyone was an immediate success, and it soon became a huge show. They return to the scene for another huge showdown this weekend.

Thoughts on the Rankings

Virginia Tech and Texas have got a total of five first place votes in the Coaches Poll. Texas has four of those. Texas is getting seven first place votes in the AP Poll. Texas has squeezed out thirteen first place votes (out of 113) in the Harris Poll. There is a slowly growing sentiment that maybe someone other than USC could be number one.

Florida State and Georgia are in a neck and neck race in the Harris Poll. Only fourteen points separate the number four and number five teams. While this may seem unimportant right now, it could become critical as the season progresses if somehow this becomes the battle for the number two spot.

Texas Tech is the lowest ranked of the unbeatens in the Harris Poll at number 13. This is unlikely to change until the Red Raiders meet up with Texas. If they beat the Longhorns, they'll move up substantially.

UCLA is the lowest ranked of the unbeatens in the Coaches Poll at number 12. They are within striking distance of number 11 Texas Tech. The Bruins have a shot to jump them in the polls with convincing wins if the Red Raiders struggle.

It's time to really start paying attention to the rankings. Next week, the first BCS Standings come out. In other words, next week is when we all start complaining about how Texas Tech has leapfrogged everyone and is ranked number one and that Arizona State has foudn their way to the number two ranking.

My Rankings

The rankings are continuing to evolve as we learn more and more about each team. There is so much parity in college football this season. Did anyone really think that we wouldn't even be halfway through October and Ohio State, Tennessee, and Iowa would all have two losses, while Michigan and Oklahoma would each have three? That's five of the preseason Top Ten teams in most people's rankings. It has been a surprising season, to say the least. This week I narrowed down my rankings to thirty teams that I thought deserved to be ranked. At the end of the day, only 25 could be. The team's previous ranking is in parentheses.

1. USC 5-0 (1)
2. Texas 5-0 (3)
3. Virginia Tech 6-0 (2)
4. Alabama 5-0 (4)
5. Georgia 5-0 (6)
6. Florida State 5-0 (7)
7. Penn State 6-0 (13)
8. UCLA 5-0 (14)
9. Notre Dame 4-1 (10)
10. Miami, FL 4-1 (12)
11. Florida 5-1 (8)
12. LSU 5-1 (11)
13. Ohio State 3-2 (5)
14. Michigan State 4-1 (17)
15. Texas Tech 5-0 (19)
16. Auburn 4-1 (22)
17. Boston College 5-1 (20)
18. California 5-1 (16)
19. Tennessee 3-2 (9)
20. Oregon 5-1 (--)
21. Colorado 4-1 (--)
22. TCU 5-1 (24)
23. Minnesota 5-1 (--)
24. Arizona State 3-3 (15)
25. Louisville 4-1 (--)

Dropped Out:
Wisconsin 5-1 (18), Georgia Tech 3-2 (21), Nebraska 4-1 (23), Michigan 3-3 (25)
All these teams lost last week. Nebraska's loss was a close loss to a ranked team. Michigan's was as well. Nebraska's was their first loss of the year and they nearly remained ranked. Michigan's was their third, so it was easy to drop them from the rankings. Georgia Tech and Wisconsin both lost to teams they shouldn't have. Northwestern and North Carolina State both are good teams, but should not have been able to beat the Badgers and the Yellow Jackets. Wisconsin nearly remained ranked because of their close loss on the road, but the Big Ten is so crazy, it's virtually impossible to figure out who should be ranked and who shouldn't in any given week. Call the Minnesota-Wisconsin game this week a game that will tell us a lot more about which one deserves to be ranked.

Biggest drop of a team still in the rankings: 10-Tennessee. The Vols have looked lost offensively for pretty much all but the second half against LSU this year. Their loss to Georgia looked listless. This team will probably be an underdog against both Alabama and Notre Dame, so a 7-4 season is not out of the question. With how high they started, that is almost unforgivable. Their loss showed that the fluke seems to be that the Vols came back against LSU, not the poor performance at Florida.

Smallest drop of a team that lost: 2- California. The Golden Bears played well enough to beat UCLA for a large portion of the game. They were leading 40-28 late in the game, but the Bruins came back. That is a great win for the Bruins, and not that bad of a loss for Cal. The Bears are proving that they are a really good football team. A very nice performance by the Bears despite the loss.

Biggest drop of a team that won: 3- Florida. The Gators looked totally unmotivated in their win over Mississippi State. For much of the game, the Gators did not seem to really care one way or the other. The final score looked nice, but the motivation did not. After the loss to Alabama last week, people were hoping for a little more fire. Plus, their most impressive win of the year was at home against Tennessee. They did not beat them as badly as Georgia beat them on the road. That win does not look as impressive today as it did last week. They get a shot at redemption this week against LSU.

Biggest jump of a team that was in my rankings last week: 6- Penn State, UCLA, Auburn. The Nittany Lions beat a very good Ohio State team and proved that they belong among the nation's elite. Now, let's see how they do on the road when they go to Michigan. UCLA has now got back-to-back great comeback wins. The season sets up beautifully to be 10-0 heading into their game against USC. Of course, let's put them on Upset Watch as well, as they go on the road to face a wounded Washington State team that has plenty of firepower. The Auburn Tigers jumped up six spots because teams ahead of them either lost or did not look all that impressive. The Tigers haven't played a good team since their opening day loss to Georgia Tech, but they have been looking better and better. Auburn has looked like a contender for the SEC West title since that day and deserve their jump in the rankings.

A little bit of confusion is breaking out. I came so close to ranking Texas #1 this week and USC #2. The Trojans dominated much of the game against Arizona, but the on field result looked much closer than the stats ever looked. Also, the final score was much closer than I would have expected from USC. But here is the deal. The Trojans have struggled each of the last three weeks. No doubt about it. Yet they still have a 32 point, ten point, and 21 point win in their last three games. Two of those wins were against ranked teams. Show me another team that could be considered not playing up to par and still be averaging winning by 21 over a three game stretch. I just can't believe that Texas would fit into that category. There is reason to be concerned for the Trojans. They may get jumped if they don't start playing better. Texas jumped Virginia Tech because of the first half that the Hokies had against Marshall and the pure dominance Texas showed from the beginning against Oklahoma.

Week Seven: Monday

2005-10-10T09:00:00.000-04:00

WEEKEND IN REVIEW

Game of the Week
UCLA 47, California 40

In what was a truly great college football game, the Bruins fought back from a 40-28 fourth quarter deficit, thanks in part to a fake punt from around midfield. Maurice Drew absolutely exploded in this game. The Bruins took the lead 41-40 on a great Drew run into the endzone, but the Bears had one shot. It was intercepted. The Bruins were facing fourth down with six seconds left, so they had to try to run out the clock and not just kneel down. They ran the ball up the gut and got into the endzone as time expired. It was a great game that featured a little bit of everything. It was definitely worth watching.

Upset of the Week
Minnesota 23, Michigan 20

So why was this game so surprising? The spread was not that far in favor of the Wolverines, and Michigan had two losses to Minnesota's one. But the Golden Gophers had gotten absolutely spanked by Penn State last week and Michigan had upset Michigan State. So it looked like the teams were going in opposite directions. Throw on top of that the different ways that Minnesota has found to lose to Michigan in recent years, and it is easy to see why as Minnesota lined up for a game winning field goal, many people around the country thought that the Gophers would find a way to mess up. But they didn't, and they ended their 19 year losing streak to the Wolverines. The Little Brown Jug is going back to the Golden Gophers!

Player of the Week
Maurice Drew, UCLA

It would have been just as easy to give this award to LenDale White and he was who I was planning to give this to, until I watched the stunning performance put on by Drew. He ran the ball 15 times for 65 yards and three touchdowns. He caught two passes for 52 yards and a touchdown. He returned one kickoff for twenty yards. He returned three punts for 162 yards and a touchdown. That is 299 total yards on 21 touches and five touchdowns. Those are numbers that Reggie Bush would be proud of. Is there a chance that Bush isn't the best do-it-all kind of player in his own city? Drew definitely lit up the Bears and was the reason that the Bruins came away with one of their most important victories since 1998.

Team of the Week
Penn State Nittany Lions

The Penn State Nittany Lions came away with a very impressive 17-10 win over the Ohio State Buckeyes. They controlled the game with their defense. They were supposed to lose to Ohio State and learn that they weren't quite back yet. In the end, the Nittany Lions looked every bit as good as Texas looked against the Buckeyes. Texas is ranked by most people as the #2 team in the country. Penn State's win announces to the country that the Nittany Lions are back. Regardless of what JoePa says ("I would say that we never went anywhere"), the program has been down, and Happy Valley hasn't been this happy in a long time.

Stat of the Week
1189 total yards

The amazing 1189 total yards put up by Northwestern and Wisconsin combined was an incredible number. Northwestern had 674 total yards and Wisconsin had just (just...ha!) 515. Northwestern won the game 51-48, and it was as wild of a shootout as you can possible imagine! It was a great game and a truly amazing offensive explosion.

Play of the Week
Devin Hester's punt return

OK, so it got called back, but Miami's Devin Hester ran all over the field and had a 60 yard touchdown on a punt return. Duke players were hanging all over him time and again, but he kept on reversing his field and reversing his field until he broke into the open and ran it all the way for a touchdown. It was an amazing play. There was a penalty on the play, and it did not count, but if you have not gotten a chance to see this punt return yet, find a way to do it because it is worth it just to see it.

Turnover of the Week
Kevin Smith's fumble.

Kevin Smith intercepted Cody Hodges near the goal line in the Nebraska-Texas Tech game. There was just 1:11 left in the game, and it looked like the Huskers had locked it up. The nose tackle was rumbling down the field. But then, the inexplicable happened. Bryan Kegans tipped the ball loose from his hands, and Danny Amendola fell on it for the Red Raiders. It was an shocking turn of events. The Cornhuskers still had a shot and got the Red Raiders into a fourth down and two situation, but allowed Texas Tech to complete a ten yard touchdown pass with just twelve seconds left, to lose 34-31.

Key First Half Moment of the Week
Vince Young's 64 yard touchdown pass to Billy Pittman.

The score was 17-6, Texas over Oklahoma. The Sooners had hung tough through a rough first half and were still within striking distance. There was not much time left in the half, so surely the Longhorns will just let the clock run out, right? Wrong. Vince Young found Billy Pittman for a 64 yard touchdown pass and the Longhorns lead over Oklahoma had grown to 24-6 with just 17 seconds left in the first half. The game was virtually over at that point, as it took all the wind out of Oklahoma's sails, and it gave Texas a big 18 point lead going into the locker room.

Moment of the Week
Thomas Flowers punt return for a touchdown against Tennessee

Thomas Flowers took the punt back at his own 46 yard line. Georgia lead Tennessee 13-7 at this point and there was just under nine minutes left in the game. After Flowers had returned the punt 54 yards for a touchdown, the score was 20-7 and the game was all but over. Flowers made everyone miss. Brandon Colquitt had been trying to get off a booming kick, and he did, but it wound up being too much of a line drive, and Flowers was able to return it for a huge touchdown.

Week Six: Friday

2005-10-07T09:00:00.000-04:00

WEEKEND STARS
Thoughts on who the stars of the weekend will be.

Game of the Week- Georgia at Tennessee- The Vols and the Dawgs tend to play close hard fought games that come down to the final minutes. This should be no exception. Defenses generally dominate this game as well. This game should be no exception. D.J. Shockley will be going against a sound defense for the first time. The Vols will be playing their third game against a Top Five team this season. Gerald Riggs needs to be running well for the Vols because Rick Clausen has an injury that could inhibit him. When is the Vols offense going to start looking crisp? It doesn't seem likely that it will be here against the stout Georgia defense. This game will go a long way to determining who is going to win the SEC East title.

Upset Special- Oklahoma vs. Texas- Never did I think that the day would come that we would see Texas as a two touchdown favorite in this rivalry game. At least, not this past summer. Oklahoma has hammered Texas since the 2000 season and has really made this Red River Rivalry into a Red River Mismatch most years. But this year, Texas supposedly has the advantage. Vince Young is one of the top quarterbacks in the country. The defense is among the best in the country. But getting by Oklahoma may not be as easy as it appears. The Sooners had a week off two weeks ago, and came back and played their best game of the year against Kansas State. Adrian Peterson has an ankle sprain, but he looks like he is geared up and ready to go. The Texas mental block against Oklahoma had better be broken, because the Sooners have a chance to make this game a lot closer than people expect.

Team of the Week- Boston College Eagles- The Eagles are battling Virginia this week. So far, Virginia is still being found in some polls. Boston College is not favored by much. All of this is surprising, given that if you have watched the two teams play, it seems clear that BC has outperformed the Cavs so far this year. When Virginia has gone up against an opponent of equal footing or that is just slightly ahead of them over the past few years, they have not played particularly well. This seems like a game where Boston College really announces to the world just how good they are.

Players of the Week-
1) Mike Hart, Michigan- Hart should be able to run wild on a Minnesota defense that gave up a ton of rushing yards to Penn State last week. If Hart is fully healthy, like he appears to be, this week should feature a solid 150-200 yards for Hart.
2) Kevin Simon, Tennessee- The Vols linebacker has performed very well so far this year, and hasn't gotten enough credit nationally for how well he has played. This week ought to be an even better week for Simon. In a game that will be dominated by the defenses, Simon could be the key player to shutting down D.J. Shockley and the Georgia offense. He should be able to succeed for much of the day.
3) Reggie Bush, USC- Playing Arizona just seems to shape up as a game that Bush ought to run wild in. Bush is an exciting playmaker, and that seems to be something that Arizona will struggle to account for. They may be able to slow down White, and may even be able to come up with a scheme to slow down Leinart, but there is no way they will be able to slow down Bush and his playmaking ability too.
4) Sam Keller, Arizona State- Oregon's pass defense has given up a lot of big plays this year. Keller will be looking to right the ship after throwing five interceptions a week ago against USC. He ought to have a big game against the Ducks pass defense. Look for Hagan to have a big day catching the ball as well.
5) Ted Ginn Jr., Ohio State- The Buckeyes are going against a tough Penn State defense. In their last big game, they did not get the ball in the hands of Ginn often enough. This game, I expect to see Ginn get the ball in his hands in every way possible. Ginn will have a huge day against a very good Penn State defense. In a game otherwise dominated by defense, look for Ginn to make a couple of special plays.

THURSDAY REVIEW
Very quick recap of Thursday's games

North Carolina State 17, Georgia Tech 14- The Wolfpack jumped out to an early 10-0 lead, and it looked like there was no way the Yellow Jackets would get back into it. But, they found themselves behind 14-10 when Jay Davis hit Brian Clark for an 80 yard touchdown pass and the lead. They then won the game when Reggie Ball threw an interception in the endzone with half a minute left. Hard to blame Ball for the interception, though, as the ball bounced off of Calvin Johnson's hands. Johnson should have had it. NCSU saved their season, and got to 1-2 in conference play, while now Georgia Tech's win over Auburn seems like a distant memory

Florida Atlantic 28, Louisiana-Lafayette 10- It was a very nice win for the Owls. It was their first in their very short Division 1-A history. Danny Embick had a great game at quarterback, but the defense really stepped it up for the Owls. The Owls dominated in the fourth quarter, somewhere that they have struggled so far this year. With Middle Tennessee coming to town next weekend, don't completely dismiss the chances of the Owls making a run at a Sun Belt title just yet.

ONE LINERS
Incredibly basic previews of tonight's game.

Syracuse at Connecticut (8:00 ESPN2)- This is a pretty nice rivalry game, even though it is relatively new in football. The Orange are 1-3 and basically must win if they want to keep their hopes of a bowl game alive. UConn has started 3-1, but really hasn't played anybody yet. The Orange have played several tough games already. It lookes like a potential upset for Syracuse, but I still don't expect it to happen. The Huskies are fired up about playing on national television at home, and that will carry the day for them.

Week Six: Thursday

2005-10-06T09:00:00.000-04:00

Viewer's Guide

Which games should you watch this weekend? What games should you be keeping your eyes on during each time period? We've got it all worked out for you. The day is divided into five parts. Some are more unequal than others due to the start time of the games. All times are Eastern.

The time periods are early games (start time before 2:00), afternoon (start time from 2:15-5:00), late afternoon (start time from 5:15-7:15), evening (start time from 7:30-9:45), and late night (start time after 10:00). The games are ranked by time period and give you a couple of reasons to watch each game, whether it is questions that need to be answered or something else altogether. The games are the games listed on CollegeFootballNews.com as the television games for this weekend. Only Saturday games are included.

Let's get it started!

Early Games

1. Oklahoma vs. Texas (Dallas, TX) (1:00 ABC/Gameplan)- 1) Vince Young has a chance in a showcase game to show everyone why he deserves the Heisman Trophy. Oklahoma's defense has stuffed him in the past. 2) Adrian Peterson has a chance to jump right back into the Heisman race with a big game against the stingy Longhorns defense. 3) Oklahoma always beats Texas. But Texas is clearly the better team right now. Is this the year the streak finally ends?

2. Virginia at Boston College (1:00 ABC/Gameplan)- 1) This is a key game for both teams to prove where they stand. Both already have one conference loss and cannot afford another one if they hope to stick around in the conference title race. 2) Marques Hagans is an exciting quarterback, but what will he do against the best defense he has seen yet this year. 3) The Eagles need to find some consistency on offense. Virginia's defense has made opposing offenses look a lot better than they should so far this year.

3. Minnesota at Michigan (1:00 ABC/Gameplan)- 1) Laurence Maroney's Heisman chances are on life support after last week's horrific performance at Penn State. He must have a big game against Michigan to have any shot at the hardware. 2) How important is Mike Hart to Chad Henne? Maybe more important than we realized. Will they be able to continue the offensive resurgence that began last week against a team that got shredded by Penn State a week ago? 3) This is Texas-Oklahoma lite. Minnesota never beats Michigan, and they've lost in pretty remarkable fashion sometimes. This year, both teams are roughly equal right now. Can the Gophers finally find a way in Ann Arbor?

4. Marshall at Virginia Tech (12:00 ESPN2)- 1) How bad is Marshall? Maybe not as bad as people seem to think they are. Remember, they were one play away from being 3-1 when they played Kansas State. Can they come up with another highlight reel performance against the Hokies? 2) Marcus Vick ticked off some West Virginia fans last weekend with his antics last weekend (inappropriate gesture, throwing the ball at a defender, elbowing a coach on the sideline). Yet, his play has inserted him into the Heisman discussion. How will he play this week now that people are really paying attention to his every move? 3) Virginia Tech will be playing at roughly the same time as Texas for the second straight week. Yet again, this is an opportunity to prove that they deserve the #2 rank over the Longhorns.

5. Wisconsin at Northwestern (12:00 ESPN)- 1) Here come the Badgers again. Last year, they tempted us early in the year, starting 9-0 before collapsing down the stretch. With Northwestern, Minnesota, Purdue, and Illinois ahead on the schedule to get to 9-0, they could do it yet again. Are they capable of staying focused in a road game against a good offense? 2) The Wildcats offense is lead by Brett Basanez. They should be able to score some points and keep this one interesting. 3) Wisconsin is lead by Brian Calhoun. He runs the ball very well, and John Stocco has been no slouch passing the ball. They lit up Temple like a Christmas tree, and Northwestern's defense has not looked all that impressive so far this year.

6. Wake Forest at Florida State (12:00 JP/Gameplan)- 1) And here come the Demon Deacons. Wake Forest is making their annual midseason push towards making all of us believers in them again after their upset of Clemson last week. Can they make it two Bowdens in two weeks? 2) Florida State is still searching for some consistency on offense. Will Drew Weatherford, along with what was supposed to be a superb running attack, get it together this week? 3) Florida State is looking for a statement game. It's hard to find one on their schedule. The trip to Virginia next week is their toughest road game until Clemson and Florida wrap up the season. Could the 'Noles be looking past Wake Forest?

7. Kansas at Kansas State (12:00 FSN)- 1) This is an in-state rivalry that doesn't get a lot of pub, but is a pretty good game. Kansas beat Kansas State for the first time in 11 years last year. Can they make it two in a row? 2) After both teams lost for the first time all year last week, they both have their backs against the wall this week. A loss will put either team at a severe disadvantage in the Big Twelve North Division. 3) Charles Gordon and Nick Reid lead one of the best defenses in the Big Twelve. Will they slow down what has been an average Kansas State offense so far?

8. Mississippi State at Florida (12:30 JP/Gameplan)- 1) The Gators have been roundly busted on this week by many members of the media after last week's 31-3 debacle at Alabama. They will be looking to show what kind of team they really are this week. 2) Last year, Mississippi State stunned Florida in a game that gave some momentum to Sylvester Croom. They'll be looking to make it two in a row against the mighty Gators. 3) When will Chris Leak start to look comfortable in this offense?

9. Air Force at Navy (1:30 CSTV)- 1) Few things can top a game between two of the service academies. These games are always hard fought. 2) Shaun Carney has been great at quarterback for the Falcons. The question is, can Navy's undersized defense slow them down? 3) Can Air Force's defense, which has been pushed around the last couple of weeks, hope to slow down Navy's strong attack?

10. Central Michigan at Army (1:00 ESPN Classic)- 1) 0-4 is 0-4, but Army and Bobby Ross are clearly making steps forward this year. A win over Central Michigan would be another step forward. 2) Jerry Seymour is a good back for the Chippewas. How will he fare against a hard hitting Army defense? 3) Zac Dahman is still an underrated quarterback for the Black Knights.

Afternoon

1. Georgia at Tennessee (3:30 CBS)- 1) In the world of SEC East football, this game is huge. If Tennessee loses, they are all but eliminated from the SEC East title chase, while it would mean that the Georgia-Florida game would probably be for all the beans. If Georgia loses, it throws the division into a three team free for all that will take at least the rest of October to sort out. 2) D.J. Shockley now needs to do it against the best defense he has faced all year. He led Georgia on a scoring drive last year against Tennessee. He would love to lead the Dawgs to the win this time around. 3) Gerald Riggs will be relied on heavily in this game. How will he do against the solid (but untested) Georgia defense?

2. Texas Tech at Nebraska (4:00 TBS)- 1) Wow. That Texas Tech offense has been on a roll and they will be going up against a Nebraska defense that has been almost like a brick wall so far this year. When those two sides are on the field, look out! 2) Nebraska's Zac Taylor really looked like he finally caught onto the offense last week against Iowa State. Can he keep it going against an average Red Raider defense? 3) 70-10. That was the final score of last year's game. The game should be far more competitive this time around. Nebraska will be looking for revenge for last year's embarrassment.

3. Arizona at USC (3:30 FSN)- 1) The Trojans need to get their swagger back on defense. Arizona should be a good team to do that against. 2) Win one for the Stoops family! Twice last year, the Trojans humiliated the Stoops family. Can they make it three in a row? 3) Matt Leinart, Reggie Bush, LenDale White. Yep, still all on the field. Still worth watching every time they play.

4. Iowa at Purdue (4:30 ESPN)- 1) Where is the team that was supposed to contend for the Rose Bowl? These two teams may rank up there with the most disappointing teams in the country so far. One will start to get their swagger back this week. 2) Brandon Kirsch and Drew Tate both are good quarterbacks that have not played great so far. Will this be their breakout game? 3) So far, Iowa's defense has been a little more respectable than Purdue's. But Purdue's offense has been more respectable than Iowa's. Now that the pressure of winning the national title is off both these team's shoulders, will they play looser?

5. North Carolina at Louisville (4:30 Gameplan)- 1) First, Georgia Tech, then Wisconsin, North Carolina State, and Utah. Now Louisville! Does the murderer's row that is the Tar Heels schedule ever end? (Answer: No.) 2) Brian Brohm got his groove back last week against Florida Atlantic. The competition is a wee bit tougher this week. 3) It's the Big East against the ACC! Every time these conferences play each other, the rivalry runs deeper. The Big East desperately needs to prove that some team from their conference can beat an ACC team.

6. Duke at Miami, FL (3:30 ESPNU)- 1) The Hurricanes are square in the middle of the cushy part of their schedule. Last week's game against South Florida and next week's game with Temple both look like gimmes. Can the Hurricanes remain focused on the task at hand? 2) Duke needs to get something going on offense just to prove that they can. So far, things have been slow moving for the Blue Devils offense. How will they perform against the Hurricanes stout defense? 3) Kyle Wright has a chance to really get into a rythmn on the offensive side of the ball against this slightly below average Duke defense.

7. San Diego State at UNLV (3:00 Gameplan)- 1) Finally, UNLV did not play in a close game last week. Of course, they get beat badly by Wyoming, but they have played some very close games so far this year. This week's game should be no exception. 2) The Aztecs look to have turned a corner. They were 0-2 heading up to Ohio State, but played the Buckeyes within 27-6 (not bad), and since have beaten San Jose State and BYU. At 1-1 in the Mountain West, they are not out of the conference race just yet, particularly if they can beat UNLV. 3) Both teams are preparing for tough road games next week. San Diego State will be going to Utah and UNLV will be heading up to Air Force. They both need wins to get momentum going as they gear up for next week.

Late Afternoon

1. Texas A&M at Colorado (7:00 FSN)- 1) Reggue McNeal had an off week last week against Baylor. Surely he won't have back to bad games, right? 2) The Buffaloes are slowly asserting themselves as a team to be reckoned with out of the North. With a road trip to Texas coming next week, a win over a good A&M team would do wonders for their confidence. 3) The Aggies have been one of the bigger disappointments a one loss team can be at this time of year. They better snap out of it if they hope to win the South.

2. LSU at Vanderbilt (7:00 ESPN2)- 1) Jay Cutler will make his pitch for the Heisman Trophy against a team that has really struggled defending the pass this year. 2) There is a distinct possibility that Vanderbilt was just looking past Middle Tennessee because of the hype surrounding the LSU game. They can earn back all the respect they lost with a solid performance against a very good Tiger team. 3) JaMarcus Russell has done very well this year when given the chance to throw the ball around the field. Other than one half against Tennessee, he has looked like the next great SEC quarterback.

3. Utah at Colorado State (6:30 Gameplan)- 1) This is a game of great importance in the Mountain West title chase. Then again, every game between this evenly matched conference is of great importance to the Mountain West title chase. 2) Utah is currently 3-0 at home and 0-2 on the road. This team is less experienced than last year's team. When will they learn how to win on the road? 3) Kyle Bell has provided the Rams with the running game they have so desperately needed to aid Justin Holland and the passing game. This year's balanced offense has proven very difficult to slow down.

4. Houston at Tulane (6:00 i/PAX)- 1) This game will be played in Lafeyette, Lousiana, which is not exactly Tulane's home field, but it is as close as it comes these days. 2) Lester Ricard is a quarterback that has looked good at times, but never seems to quite be able to get over the hump. The same can be said of his counterpart on the Houston sideline, Kevin Kolb. 3) This really could be a battle for second in the C-USA West Division. With UTEP looking very beatable so far, there is no reason that the winner of this game couldn't be playing for the Conference USA title.

Evening

1. Ohio State at Penn State (7:45 ESPN)- 1) How long have they been waiting for a game that was this big in Happy Valley? It seems like forever. With the Gameday crew there, the crowd will be fired up. It just feels right to have a big game being played at Penn State at this time of year. 2) Freshmen Derrick Williams and Justin King are as explosive as any players in the country. Ted Ginn Jr. stands on other sideline. He too is explosive. Could there be some big plays in this one? 3) These defenses are two of the better defenses in the Big Ten, if not in the country. Points could be hard to come by.

2. California at UCLA (7:30 TBS)- 1) Now this should be fun. The winner becomes the main contender to USC for Pac Ten supremacy. 2) UCLA has been playing well, particularly on offense with Maurice Drew and Drew Olson. California has really been stepping it up on the defensive side of the ball, which ought to make this an interesting chess match. 3) Neither team has really proven themselves so far. A win here for either team would send them up the rankings.

3. BYU at New Mexico (8:00 Gameplan)- 1) Suddenly, the good feelings about New Mexico are gone after back-to-back losses to UTEP and TCU. Still, this bunch of Lobos is a dangerous crew. 2) Last week, the Cougars looked lifeless against San Diego State, the week after a heartbreaking loss to TCU. Can the Cougars find it in them to rise to the occassion this week? 3) DonTrell Moore is a great back for the Lobos. He should find plenty of running room against the Cougars defense.

4. Tulsa at Southern Miss (8:00 CSTV)- 1) Southern Miss' season has been broken up by two hurricanes. It will be nice to see some normalcy return for the Eagles with back to back home games the next two weeks. 2) Paul Smith has been throwing the ball very effectively for Tulsa so far this season. Tulsa has been a pleasant surprise so far this year, playing tough against Oklahoma and Houston and beating North Texas and Memphis. 3) Dustin Almond had one of the best games of his career last weekend. Can he continue the momentum this weekend against Tulsa?

5. Hawaii at Louisiana Tech (7:30 Gameplan)- 1) The Warriors could have, maybe even should have, beaten Boise State at home last weekend. How will they respond to that heartbreaker this weekend in Louisiana? 2) Matt Kubik struggled early in the season against Florida and Kansas, but he lit New Mexico State up last week. Can the Bulldogs quarterback continue his successs from a week ago? 3) A Bulldogs win would earn them plenty of respect as they build towards the season's final two games when they will face off with conference favorites, Boise State and Fresno State.

6. Portland State at Boise State (8:05 Gameplan)- 1) Portland State only lost to Fresno State 27-17 last year. So maybe they can keep it close against the Broncos. 2) The Broncos have been very underwhelming so far this year, with their best performance coming in the beat down of Bowling Green at home. Last week's nailbiter against Hawaii was a little too close for comfort. 3) Jared Zabransky has been looking more and more like his old self lately. This shouls be a nice game to get his confidence back to 100%.

Late Night

1. Oregon at Arizona State (10:15 FSN)- 1) This is one of the more intriguing games of the day. Both teams lead USC at halftime, only to see the Trojans dominate the second half. One of these teams will have an early lead (along with the Cal-UCLA winner) for second in the Pac Ten. 2) Kellen Clemens still gets no respect around the country for how solid of a quarterback he has been. Sam Keller has been getting a lot of respect, but still is relatively unknown nationwide. This may be one of the better quarterback match-ups of the weekend. 3) That USC loss last week for Arizona State took a lot out of the Sun Devils. Will they be able to come back and focus for the Ducks this week?

2. Fresno State at New Mexico State (10:00 ESPNU)- 1) You know you are at least a little bit interested to keep up with Fresno State. If they can jump out to a 17-0 lead at Oregon, and USC can fall behind 13-0 at Oregon, could the Bulldogs jump out to a big early lead when they go to USC on November 19? 2) Paul Pinegar is a very good quarterback going against a very average defense. 3) The offense has been slowly improving for New Mexico State. Justine Buries is a good running back. However, we all know that Hal Mumme wants his quarterbacks to be firing the ball all over the field.

One Liners
Quick preview of tonight's games.

North Carolina State at Georgia Tech (7:30 ESPN)- This game is huge to the ACC. The Wolfpack are off to an 0-2 conference start, with two close losses. Georgia Tech is 1-1 in conference play after the blowout to Virginia Tech. These are two hard hitting defenses that will provide plenty of big plays. This game ought to be fun to watch.

Florida Atlantic at Louisiana-Lafayette (8:00)- The Owls are still looking for their first Division 1-A win and they have a shot against the Ragin' Cajuns. After watching the Owls this year, it is clear that they have plenty of speed, but they are just too small to compete right now. Now that they are picking on someone their own size, things might be different. Both teams still have hopes of at least putting together a nice Sun Belt season.

For a more in-depth preview (by me) of these two games, click on Thursday Night Throwdown.

Wednesday in Review
Very quick recap of last night's games.

Northern Illinois 38, Miami (OH) 27- The Huskies jumped out to a huge 28-7 and 35-17 lead, but watched the RedHawks trim the lead to 35-27 in the fourth quarter. Sam Hurd and Garrett Wolfe have established themselves as two big playmakers. NIU has just thrown their hat into the race in the MAC.

Week Six: Wednesday

2005-10-05T09:00:00.000-04:00

Overreaction Wednesday
Getting a little bit crazy and having some knee jerk reactions to last weekend's games.

Purdue is going to struggle to come up with enough wins to find themselves in a bowl game after starting the year as a darkhorse pick to play for the national title.

Memphis' running back DeAngelo Williams is even better than any of us thought. Put that boy in New York City! When you can beat a team as good as UTEP with a third string quarterback, that's how you know you've got a special running back.

Rutgers is still a viable threat to not only get to a bowl game, but to make a run at the Big East title. They've been dismissed since an opening day loss to Illinois (in which they blew a 20 point fourth quarter lead), but they haven't lost since. The home game with West Virginia this weekend may be the biggest game in recent Rutgers history.

If Kentucky, South Carolina, and Vanderbilt did not have to play each other down the stretch, I would say that none would win another game the rest of the year. The battle for fourth in the SEC East could be very entertaining between these three. Right now, South Carolina is 0-3, Kentucky is 0-1, and Vanderbilt is 2-0 in the conference. Edge: Vanderbilt. Vanderbilt plays LSU and Kentucky and South Carolina square off this weekend.

Here come the Sooners! Their win over Kansas State was by far Oklahoma's best performance of the season, and now they will finish at least 7-4, if not 8-3 or 9-2.

Remember that some of these things are gross overreactions to the way teams played this weekend. These are not necessarily straight predictions, but rather thoughts that many may not consider that are very distinct possibilities.

News & Notes

Southern Miss and Houston have rescheduled their game for November 13. That game could have huge ramifications on the C-USA race and the bowl chase.

By now, you all know that Alabama's Tyrone Prothro broke his leg last Saturday against the Gators. Prothro was the big playmaker for the Tide. His loss could make this team a lot more average. However, the Tide does have some depth at wide receiver.

Tennessee's Rick Clausen is wearing a protective boot. He will play against Georgia, but it could make him ineffective. Could the Vols really turn back to Erik Ainge at quarterback if Clausen is struggling to move around?

California's Marshawn Lynch was back in action last weekend against Arizona, which is good news for the Golden Bears as they head to UCLA for their toughest test to date.

Quotables

Mack Brown, Texas head coach: "The OU game is always special. We were able to win at the Rose Bowl against Michigan and we able to win at the horseshoe against Ohio State, so we have had some special experiences. (ABC's) Keith Jackson is coming down to broadcast the 100th Texas-Oklahoma game in the series, and this makes it extra special."

Mike Leach, Texas Tech head coach: "Last year (70-10 Tech win over Nebraska) our defense had a huge role. We got a lot of turnovers and had the short field toward the end of the game. The score wasn't indicative of the final outcome."

Bill Callahan, Nebraska head coach: "As I stated Saturday, it was a complete and total team victory over Iowa State. We commend Iowa State for its efforts, and we were fortunate to win. We want to thank our crowd for that, and it was the loudest crowd we have had since I've been at Nebraska. We hope to have the same level of noise and the same atmosphere this week."

Jeff Tedford, Cal head coach: "I think Joe has grown into being used to that now. I think going to Washington and being on ABC, that type of stuff, was a great experience for him. We have played in front of big crowds at home, so that has been good. I think in the beginning that was something he had to get used to. I think he is now more comfortable, but this will step it up a notch. From what I understand the game is closed to being sold out, so there is going to be a great crowd there. It is going to be one of those games. I told the team this when we met on Monday, `this is why we play this game.' It doesn't get any better than this - two Top 20 teams playing one another in the Rose Bowl in front of a near capacity crowd. It is pretty exciting."

Phil Fulmer, Tennessee head coach: ""The exciting part about it is our team still realizes that as well as we've played, there's a considerable amount of room for improvement. We're calling on some young players to put themselves in a position to be able to help and continue to improve fundamentally. Obviously we will have a huge challenge this week to get those things done versus an outstanding Georgia football team."

One Liners
A very quick preview of tonight's games.

Miami, OH at Northern Illinois (7:30 ESPN2)- This has been a very disappointing beginning to the season for both teams. The RedHawks are 2-2 and the Huskies are 1-3. Miami is starting to play like the MAC's best team behind Josh Betts and the passing game. But Garrett Wolfe and the NIU running game are solid, and Phil Horvath has been lighting it up through the air. This ought to be a very interesting game for two of the MAC's superpowers.

Tuesday in Review
A quick review of last night's games.

Troy 13, North Texas 10- The streak is over, and Troy may just have become the favorite to win the Sun Belt, which is shocking given North Texas' dominance over the last several years. North Texas could not control the clock and simply got pounded by Troy. Truthfully, I kept on waiting for the momentum to swing UNT's way like it always seems to do, but Troy never let it. There was never really a moment where it looked like UNT was really in the game. Troy dictated it. Amazing win for the Trojans.

Rant of the Week

There were a ton of good rants this week and many that deserved to be here. However, in the end, this is the one that won out. It's a bit long, but it's worth the read.

While I could rant about a lot on my Oregon State Beavers this year (unfortunately), I'll focus on a bright spot -- Mike Hass. Seriously, why is no one talking about him?

Hass is #1 in the nation in both total receiving yards and yards per game, leading the #2 spot by 205 yards (H. Baskett, New Mexico) and 19.5 YPG (A. Ellison, E. Carolina) respectively. Hass was practically mugged the entire ASU game, and still came away with 174 yards. His 3 TDs are at least respectible, especially when you consider that D-Coordinator's make sure he's blanket-covered in the Red Zone. Hass is an incredible route runner with great hands, always finds a hole, and fights for every ball.

I'm sick of hearing about:
Derek Hagan (431 yds, 107.75 YPG)
Jason Avant (418 yds, 104.50 YPG)
Steve Smith (407 yds, 135.67 YPG)
Dwayne Jarrett (267 yds, 87 YPG)
Ted Ginn, Jr. (152 yds, 38 YPG)
without hearing about Hass. These are all good receivers, but Hass is arguably better. I suggest the CFB media get themselves some coffee and stay up late to watch an Oregon State game once this season, because they're missing a hell of a show by Hass.

Mike
Washington DC

Thaks, Mike. As for his stats, this e-mail was received before last weekend's games, so they have changed since then. Take it for what it's worth.

Keep thse rants coming! I look forward to reading them every week.

Week Six: Tuesday

2005-10-04T09:00:00.000-04:00

Under Pressure
Mack Brown, Texas

Has any coach ever been under more pressure to win than Mack Brown this week? After all the years of having good teams that just can't quite get over the hump, this year's Texas team looks poised to breakthrough and make it to the Rose Bowl. In fact, most people expect them to at this point. Is that realistic? Maybe, maybe not. But the fact is that in recent years, Brown hasn't been able to get his Longhorns past their archrival, Oklahoma. Brown hasn't done well in big games throughout his career and his teams have never won a conference championship. This year, the Sooners have looked downright awful at times, and already have two losses. If not now, when are the Longhorns going to take out OU? Texas and Mack Brown have to prove they can win against Oklahoma. This is their chance. All the pressure in the world is on Brown this week to lead his Longhorns past the Sooners.

Vince Young, Texas

Again, we have a Texas player. See the above comments on the importance of a Texas team finally beating Oklahoma. Take away the talk about the importance of winning as a coach, and realize that Young has been criticized for not winning the big games. That has started to change with his performances against Michigan in last year's Rose Bowl and the game at Ohio State earlier this year. Right now, Young has edged closer and closer to Matt Leinart in the Heisman Trophy race. He has a chance to prove he deserves the Trophy with a solid performance in this game. Last year, Oklahoma's defense snuffed Young and the Longhorns offense out, as Texas was shutout. This from a Sooners defense that got roasted on several occasions by other teams and a Longhorns offense that did the roasting to other defenses several times last year. Young has got to perform well in this game.

College Gameday Site
University Park, Pennsylvania

While the Georgia at Tennessee game may be bigger, the Ohio State at Penn State game carries a certain weight to it. The Nittany Lions seem to have returned to the top of the college football world following last week's 44-14 pounding of a ranked Minnesota team. Ohio State, on the other hand, is considered the favorite to win the conference and a team that is still right in the thick of the Rose Bowl race. This game didn't look as big as it does now just a week ago, but people have really jumped on the Penn State bandwagon after their beatdown of Minnesota. This ought to be a great game. Plus, the game is on ESPN in primetime, and Gameday has been choosing to go to a place where either they or ABC are broadcasting the game so far this year. Are they going to go to Notre Dame for the USC game next weekend? Hard to believe they wouldn't. So we'll see.

Thoughts on the Rankings

This was a big moving week in the polls. Alabama shot up, Florida and LSU shot down, Penn State jumped in, Michigan State sunk towards the bottom. All in all, things are beginning to become more clear in the rankings with each passing week.

Um, people? Virginia got beat by Maryland. I know the Terps aren't a bad team and there is no shame in losing to them, but to still have them #25 in the Coaches Poll is surprising given the fact that they struggled with Syracuse and Western Michigan already this year.

I guess the Harris pollsters were right about Idaho. Last week, they were 0-4. Today, they are 1-4 with a 27-13 win over Utah State. However, whoever was voting for them last week decided that the win was not impressive enough to keep them in the rankings this week.

The Vanderbilt Watch- This had become a staple in this section, and even though the Commodores lost to a winless Sun Belt team for the third consecutive time, they are still receiving votes. They have nine points in both the Harris Poll and the Coaches Poll. The AP Poll did drop them off altogether. With LSU coming to Nashville this weekend, dropping out of the other two seems like a distinct possibility.

The problem is that by my count there are 22 teams that truly have earned the right to be ranked. This leaves three teams for everyone to play around with. One of those other three is taken up by most people, though I remain unconvinced.

My Rankings

Putting together rankings is never easy. But it is a picture that continues to become clearer with each passing week. These rankings are not predictions of where teams will end up, but rather thoughts on where they are right now. If a team shows me something, they will move accordingly. The problem is, as I stated above, that I really only have 22 teams that I think have really earned a ranking. The final three are solid teams, but there seems to be a divide between the first 22 and the last three in my mind. This does not mean that one of the bottom three can not beat (or have not beaten in one case) a team in the Top 22. It just means they have more to show me before I believe.

Last week's ranking is in parentheses.

1. USC 4-0 (1)
2. Virginia Tech 5-0 (2)
3. Texas 4-0 (3)
4. Alabama 5-0 (13)
5. Ohio State 3-1 (5)
6. Georgia 4-0 (6)
7. Florida State 4-0 (10)
8. Florida 4-1 (4)
9. Tennessee 3-1 (8)
10. Notre Dame 4-1 (14)
11. LSU 2-1 (11)
12. Miami, FL 3-1 (15)
13. Penn State 5-0 (22)
14. UCLA 4-0 (9)
15. Arizona State 3-2 (12)
16. California 5-0 (25)
17. Michigan State 4-1 (7)
18. Wisconsin 5-0 (18)
19. Texas Tech 4-0 (16)
20. Boston College 4-1 (19)
21. Georgia Tech 3-1 (20)
22. Auburn 4-1 (23)
23. Nebraska 4-0 (--)
24. TCU 4-1 (--)
25. Michigan 3-2 (--)

Dropped Out: Minnesota 4-1 (17), Iowa State 3-1 (21), Clemson 2-3 (24)
All three lost this past weekend. Minnesota's was an embarrassing 44-14 loss. Clemson's was to a team they should have beaten in Wake Forest. Iowa State's loss wasn't embarrassing or particularly surprising, but when combined with their close win over Army and their average game against Illinois State, they had to be dropped.

Biggest drop of a team still in the rankings: 10- Michigan State. The Spartans lost in overtime to Michigan. While that wasn't a bad loss or a totally humiliating loss, it just shows that the Spartans are still not quite ready to make the jump. They will find their way back up the rankings if they keep on winning.

Smallest drop of a team that lost: 3- Arizona State. Hard to argue with this drop by the Sun Devils. They lead USC late in the football game, which is something that few people expected to happen this year. The Sun Devils have now just barely lost to both USC and LSU. They have earned their place near the top of the polls.

Biggest drop of a team that won: 5- UCLA. The Bruins struggled badly with Washington. Of course, they were probably looking ahead to their big game against California this week. Still, their wins over San Diego State and Rice aren't that big, and their win over Oklahoma doesn't look super impressive right now. They deserved to be dropped big for their lackluster performance against Washington.

Biggest jump of a team that was in the rankings last week: 9- Alabama, Penn State, California. The Crimson Tide absolutely dominated Florida, 31-3, to prove that they belong in the national championship discussion. Penn State steamrolled Minnesota 44-14. The Nittany Lions will get their chance to prove they belong this weekend against Ohio State. California looked more focused against Arizona this week. Also, their win over Washington (which was close for a quarter and a half) looks a little bit better now that UCLA was nearly beaten by the Huskies.

I broke one of my rules. I have a few rules that I try to follow when doing my rankings. The most basic one is that if two teams have the same number of losses and they have played head to head, the team that is ranked higher is the team that won the game. This is why you see Florida ahead of Tennessee and Tennessee ahead of LSU. Of course, you can get running in circles on this (what happens if LSU beats Florida and all three have two losses?) so there has to be some common sense. However, this weekI broke that rule when I put Michigan State below Notre Dame. Part of this is because the Irish beat the Michigan team on the road that Michigan State just lost to at home. For the record, if Michigan State gets close to the Irish in the rankings, there is a very good chance they will jump Notre Dame. The problem is that if they both have one loss past next weekend, Notre Dame will have beaten USC and that may trump the on the field game. Again, this proves why ranking teams is an inexact science.

One Liners
Incredibly basic previews of tonight's game.

Troy at North Texas (7:30 ESPN2)- This could easily be the Sun Belt Game of the Year. Troy looks more talented on paper, but the Mean Green never lose Sun Belt games, particularly Sun Belt games at home. This one ought to be a good defensive battle. Will Patrick Cobbs finally get going in this game?

Week Six: Monday

2005-10-03T09:30:00.000-04:00

WEEKEND IN REVIEW

Game of the Week
USC 38, Arizona State 28

It is a bit unusual to see a two score game as the Game of the Week, but who could watch this game without getting glued to it. The Sun Devils jumped out to a 21-3 halftime lead. We all should know by now that the only way to beat USC is to jump out to a big first half lead and then try to hold on in the second half. When USC scored two early third quarter touchdowns, the game looked to be over, as the Trojans had all the momentum. But the Sun Devils hung tough, and the defense hung in there. When USC scored to take their first lead of the game halfway through the fourth quarter, the Sun Devils immediately responded with a touchdown. The Trojans responded with a touchdown of their own, but no one thought the game was over. The Sun Devils were looking good before an interception basically ended the game. It was the biggest test #1 USC has faced yet this year.

Upset of the Week
Middle Tennessee 17, Vanderbilt 15

It was a shocking development for so many reasons. The Commodores were 4-0, looking for a shocking 5-0 start. The Blue Raiders were 0-3, looking to get off the winless block. With Middle Tennessee having won the last two times these two teams played, people figured surely Vanderbilt wouldn't overlook them. Maybe they did, maybe they didn't. All that is for sure is that the Commodores couldn't find a way to beat the Blue Raiders. Vandy drove from their own one foot line well into field goal range for a last second field goal. But the Blue Raiders blocked the kick and preserved the win. Any time a Sun Belt team beats an SEC team it is a big deal. Suddenly that LSU-Vanderbilt game this weekend looks a whole lot less intriguing.

Player of the Week
Brady Quinn, Notre Dame

This was a very difficult decision this week as a lot of players had huge games in the spotlight. Quinn completed 29 of 36 passes for 440 yards and three touchdowns against Purdue in primetime. It was a road win for the Irish, 49-28. The score is not indicative of how big of a blowout this was for Notre Dame. They dominated from the beginning to the end, and Quinn had a monster game. Purdue had hammered Notre Dame in recent years, so this was quite a switch from the norm for the Irish. Quinn absolutely looked like a Heisman Trophy contender for this game. Now, onto USC and trying to get that first home win of the Charlie Weis era.

Team of the Week
Alabama Crimson Tide

Welcome back to college football, Alabama! It was a stunning performance by the Crimson Tide against the Florida Gators this past Saturday. The 31-3 win was so total, so complete, that there is suddenly national championship talk in Tuscaloosa. Brodie Croyle should be mentioned in the Heisman Trophy discussion. The one bad piece of news is that Tyrone Prothro, the star playmaker for the Tide, broke his leg in the fourth quarter and will miss the rest of the year. Can the offense still be as explosive without him? The Gators went from national title contenders to wondering where they fit in in the whole scheme of the SEC race. The Tide suddenly have to be considered the favorites in the whole SEC.

Stat of the Week
55 passes and 431 yards...for a Nebraska quarterback?!?!

Zac Taylor has come into Nebraska's offense and may have finally started to catch on to how Bill Callahan wants it to be run. He threw the ball 55 times for 431 yards in the double overtime win against Iowa State. Remember the days when Nebraska ran the option? No one would have ever expected to see the day that a quarterback could be as solid as Taylor was on Saturday. He didn't throw any interceptions either. He still looked a little off sometimes, but for the most part, this was a highly successful game for the Nebraska offense. Just scoring 13 points in regulation wasn't good, and that has to be a cause for concern for the Cornhusker faithful, but seeing Taylor looks like he understands the offense has to give them some hope.

Play of the Week
Domata Peko returns a fumble for a touchdown

The big Michigan State defensive lineman picked up a Chad Henne fumble and then started rumbling down the field. Domata Peko is a big man. He rumbled down the field 74 yards, jumping over a Michigan defender to get into the endzone. It was truly a remarkable play that reminded me of the Troy offensive lineman running down the field for a touchdown last year against Missouri. Peko's run was in a losing cause, but that is of little importance, because if you saw this play, you will probably remember it for a long time.

Turnover of the Week
Sam Keller's late interception against USC

Sam Keller and the Sun Devils were trailing 31-28 against USC late in the fourth quarter. Keller fired a pass high to Derek Hagan, his best receiver. Hagan had the ball in his hands, but almost seemed to bat the ball forward. As it came forward, it wound up in the arms of freshman Kevin Ellison of USC. That interception locked up the game for the Trojans. The momentum was gone from Arizona State and they trailed by three and now didn't have the ball...or much of a chance of slowing down the bus that was the USC offense at that point in the game.

Key First Half Moment of the Week
Jonathan Wade's interception return for a touchdown

Tennessee's Jonathan Wade returned an interception 20 yards for a touchdown in the first quarter of their game against Mississippi. This gave the Vols a 14-0 lead on Ole Miss. At that point, the realization that the Vols were not going to sleepwalk past Ole Miss set in. They had come ready to play early against the Rebels after an emotional Monday win against LSU. The game was basically over at the point that Wade returned the pick for a touchdown. From there, the Vols did sleep walk a bit, but still won comfortably, 27-10.

Moment of the Week
Garrett Rivas' redemption

Garrett Rivas missed a 27 yard field goal in the last minute of regulation that would have won the game for Michigan against Michigan State. Then in overtime, he nailed a 35 yarder to beat the Spartans, 34-31. The field goal was particularly dramatic because of his earlier miss. It was a wonderful way for the Wolverines to come up with the victory.

Week Five: Friday

2005-09-30T09:00:00.000-04:00

WEEKEND STARS
Thoughts on who the stars of the weekend will be.

Game of the Week- Florida at Alabama- This could be a preview of the SEC Championship Game. Both quarterbacks are looking to earn that respect that only comes from winning big games consistently. Brodie Croyle and Chris Leak could both have big games. The two defenses are among the best in the SEC, if not the two best. This game would put Alabama back on the map in the college football world. Yes, they've been moving slowly up the rankings, but they haven't really generated all that much talk so far. A win against the Gators and Urban Meyer would do just that. This is Meyer's first major SEC road test (Kentucky last week doesn't count). We'll see how the team responds.

Upset Special- Ole Miss at Tennessee- This is again not necessarily a game that I would pick the upset, but I'm just saying that the Rebels are going to keep this game very close and have a shot to win in the fourth quarter. The Vols played Monday night, pulled off one of the great comebacks in Tennessee football history, and went into overtime. Now, they are playing on Saturday in an early game. They really just had a few days to get ready for this game. The Rebels are not a particularly good team, but they will be playing in the perfect situation for them. Do not let the second half against LSU fool you. The Vols still have major problems on offense that need to get resolved. If the Rebels can play just enough offense to keep it close, then they should have a shot in the fourth.

Team of the Week- Florida State Seminoles- The Seminoles should rock the Syracuse Orange this weekend. The Orange and the 'Noles both have great defenses, but the fact is that Florida State and Drew Weatherford are itching to get out there and show that they have solved the teams offensive woes. For at least one game, they will look like they have this week against Syracuse. The Orange are very ineffective on offense and should struggle moving the ball, thus giving the ball to Florida State in good field position. That will mean that the 'Noles will eventually wear out the Syracuse defense and put up a bundle of points in the second half. Florida State should look very good this week.

Players of the Week-
1) Matt Leinart, USC- The Sun Devils defense gave up a load of yards to JaMarcus Russell. Arizona State will have a shot in this game because of their explosive offense (they better score more than the 13 that Oregon scored early in the game last week). But Leinart will absolutely have an incredible game. He didn't play all that well against the Ducks last week and will be looking to right the ship, so to speak.
2) Vince Young, Texas- This looks like a Heisman ballot, doesn't it? Well, who doesn't expect Young to have a monster game against Missouri? The Tigers have an OK defense, but their strength lies in their offense. Young ought to put up good numbers and run well on the Tigers defense.
3) Brandon Kirsch, Purdue- The Irish could score points in buckets this week against the Boilermakers, but something tells me that Kirsch will be putting up quite a few points against the Irish secondary as well. Kirsch will probably not implode like Chad Henne did when the Irish played Michigan a couple of weeks ago. Look for Kirsch to burn the Notre Dame secondary several times.
4) Brian Calhoun, Wisconsin- The Badgers are playing Indiana this week, and Calhoun should run wild on that defense. Calhoun will eventually see his numbers fall off a bit, particularly since he is bound to get tired from all the work, but look for Calhoun to put up a ton of yards this week against the Hoosiers.
5) Derrick Williams, Penn State- If the Nittany Lions are going to upset Minnesota this weekend, they need the big play freshmen to step up and make some plays. Williams is the most dangerous of all the freshmen. He can make some huge plays. It is this sort of game that the Nittany Lions recruited Williams to change the game with his playmaking ability. The freshmen have been good so far, but it is time to see what Williams and the Nittany Lions can do against a very good Gophers team.

THURSDAY REVIEW
Very quick recap of Thursday's games.

Colorado State 41, Air Force 23- The Rams gashed the Falcons defense with Kyle Bell running the ball for 197 yards. Bell and the Rams looked better than Utah or Wyoming did against the Falcons. The Falcons defense is beginning to get exposed. The Rams have to be considered a serious contender for the Mountain West title.

ONE LINERS
Incredibly basic previews of tonight's game.

Pittsburgh at Rutgers (8:00 ESPN2)- The Rutgers Scarlet Knights will be on TV in front of a captive audience! This is a huge game for their program. The Knights are 2-1, while the Panthers are 1-3. Brian Leonard and Ryan Hart are two of the more underrated skill position players in the country. Watch this game if for no other reason than just to watch them.