It's only fitting that both LSU and Alabama have byes the week before they meet. This is practically the defacto National Championship Game. The key to LSU winning the game will be on QB Jarrett Lee. If he plays well and doesn't turn the ball over the Tigers have a great shot at winning. Their defense is going to give Alabama fits because they are so fast and juts fly to the ball. Let's see if CB Tyronn Mathieu can continue to make plays in big games.
2. Alabama Crimson Tide (8-0) LW 2
Alabama's key to winning against LSU will be making QB Jarrett Lee beat them. The Crimson Tide defense is very talented and going to give Lee a lot of different looks. Look for the offense to rely on Trent Richardson even more than normal here. A win here and a big game from Richardson might jolt him on top of the Heisman Race.
3. Oklahoma State Cowboys (8-0) LW 4
I don't think anybody was surprised that Oklahoma State beat Baylor, but you'd be a liar if you thought they'd blow out the Bears. Their 59-24 point victory was pretty impressive mainly because their defense was able to keep the dangerous Robert Griffin III under wraps. The Cowboys cannot afford to get ahead of themselves because they have to face off against Kansas State, Texas Tech, and Oklahoma to end out the season.
4. Stanford Cardinal (8-0) LW 3
What a game against USC on Saturday Night. It took 3 OTs, but the Cardinal were able to get out of Los Angeles with a victory. The legend of Andrew Luck continues to grow as he lead the Cardinal to the victory with 330 yards and 2 TDs. But what is even more important is that Stanford is still unbeaten. They get a little breather this upcoming week against Oregon State, before facing off against Oregon in two weeks.
5. Boise State Broncos (7-0) LW 5
Boise State enjoys a nice week off before they finish up their first season in the Mountain West. Well you could almost say that they have two weeks off when they travel to UNLV which Boise State should dominate. But after their game with UNLV they have to play an improving TCU team and a still tough San Diego State. But the Broncos should continue to win games and hope that others keep losing around them.
6. Oklahoma Sooners (7-1) LW 8
After losing to Texas Tech the week before, Oklahoma was looking to make a statement against undefeated Kansas State in Manhattan. They sure did that, beating KState 58-17. Landry Jones shredded the Wildcats for 505 yards and 5 TDs. Now the Sooners host a Texas A&M team that is coming off a loss to Missouri, but still able to beat them. But it looks like the Sooners are refocused.
7. Oregon Ducks (7-1) LW 7
I don't know if it is the injuries they've had this year, but the Ducks do not look like the same team that we saw last year in the National Title game. They did win big, 43-28, but Washington State hung around a lot longer than they should have. But we'll see how good they are the next three weeks when they face off against Washington, Stanford, and USC. They are good, but they might just be the 2nd best team in their conference this year.
8. Nebraska Cornhuskers (7-1) LW 14
The famed "Blackshirt" defense had been pretty non-existent so far this season. However against Michigan State the defense's play was the biggest reason Nebraska won the game. The young secondary really stepped up and shut down the Spartan passing attack. On offense Rex Burkhead carried the load with over 100 yards rushing and 3 total touchdowns. With the win Nebraska finds themselves in the drivers seat in the Leaders Division.
9. Arkansas Razorbacks (7-1) LW 11
For a while it looked like the Razorbacks were going to get upset by Vanderbilt. Vanderbilt missed a FG in the closing seconds that would have sent the game into overtime. Taylor Wilson paced the Razorbacks with 316 yards and a TD. Arkansas cannot afford to start off slow next week when they face off against South Carolina.
10. South Carolina Gamecocks (7-1) LW 12
In their first game without RB Marcus Lattimore, the Gamecock offense was trying to figure out what they wanted to do. But luckily they were doing that against Tennessee and not somebody tougher. QB Connor Shaw continues to improve as the season goes forward. How he plays will determine if they make it back to the SEC Title game for 2nd straight year. But things don't get easy when they travel to a very talented Arkansas team.
11. Clemson Tigers (8-1) LW 6
You can't be surprised that Clemson's winning streak ended. Especially since they've been a slow starting team lately. That came back to bit them in the butt this week. Georgia Tech is a good team and with their running attack it's almost impossible to come back from double digits. Now the Tigers season isn't' over. They'll still have their opportunity to win the ACC and make it to a BCS Bowl, but they have to figure out how to start games the right way.
12. Virginia Tech Hokies (8-1) LW 13
VaTech was on upset watch for most of their game against Duke. Now that's not something that you really want, but what matters the most is that Virginia Tech still won the game. RB David Wilson continues to play well, but they need more consistent play out of QB Logan Thomas if they want to continue to win games. But they have to be glad that they have a good defense, or this game could have been bad.
13. Wisconsin Badgers (6-2) LW 10
The story of Wisconsin this year should be a warning to top teams to not schedule such a weak non conference slate. In their first six games they looked to be the real deal. The addition of Russell Wilson looked to be the move that put them over the top. However in their last two games their weaknesses on defense have been exposed. Michigan State and Ohio State (heck even Nebraska in the 1st half) took advantage of their slow defense to win the games. Now Wisconsin finds themselves in a position where they have to fight back to get their place to get to the Big 10 Championship Game.
14. Michigan State Spartans (6-2) LW 9
After their huge win over Wisconsin, the Spartans laid an egg against Nebraska. It was a complete mess for Sparty. Offensively they just couldn't do anything. They got impatient with their running game and that put them in an early hole. On defense their normally stout run defense gave up big yards to the Huskers. What was even worse was that they kept shooting themselves in the foot with dumb penalties. If the Spartans want to get things going again they have to avoid committing penalties and play a smarter game plan on offense.
15. Michigan Wolverines (7-1) LW 16
You can really tell that things are changing in Ann Arbor. In previous years this would be the time that the Wolverines would start their decline. Instead they look like they are getting better. What is even better is that they enjoyed a career day from RB Fitzgerald Toussaint who ran for 170 yards and 2 TDs against Purdue. Now if Toussaint can continue to get yards on the ground, that could take some of the workload off of Denard Robinson which will only make him better.
16. Houston Cougars (8-0) LW 17
It wasn't even a contest against Rice on Thursday night. QB Case Keenum did whatever he wanted in route to throwing for 534 yards and 9 TDs. But what surprises me is that HC Kevin Sumlin decided to leave Keenum in the game late throwing the ball when they had the game won. I know he wants Keenum to break records, but for a guy that has a history of injuries, it could have came back to bite them. I mean have we not seen how bad this team is without him?
17. Arizona State Sun Devils (6-2) LW 19
What is the best remidy after getting blown out by Oregon? How about a game against Colorado? Arizona State got back on track and rolled the Buffaloes 48-14. Brock Oseweiler threw for 307 and 2 TDs while Cameron Marshall ran for 114 and 3 TDs. The Sun Devils remaining schedule sets up pretty good for them with UCLA, Arizona, Washington State, and Cal. All four of those should be wins and should get ASU in the first ever Pac 12 Title Game.
18. Auburn Tigers (6-3) LW 20
Auburn made little work with lowly Ole Miss beating them 41-23. QB Clint Moseley only threw for 160 yards, but he did throw 4 TDs. Auburn may have 3 losses, but they are continuing to exceed expectations. With only three games left, the Tigers have a chance to make some noise. Georgia and Alabama are still on tap and if the Tigers could get some consistent QB play, they could pull off an upset.
19. Georgia Bulldogs (6-2) LW 22
After losing their first team games of the season, he Bulldogs have ripped off 6 straight and are putting themselves in a position to make it to the SEC Title Game. This past weekend they were able to beat rival Florida in the "World's Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party" 24-20 in a game where they had to overcome a lot of self inflected mistakes. But luckily the Bulldogs get to face off against New Mexico State this next week before a tough match up against Auburn in two weeks.
20. Kansas State Wildcats (7-1) LW 15
Kansas State might have been undefeated going into this past weekend, but nobody really considered them to be one of the best teams in the Nation. And their 58-17 loss to Oklahoma they were exposed for who they really are. What makes matters worse is that they have to continue their tour of Oklahoma and now face off against #3 ranked Oklahoma State. I guess when it rains, it pours.
21. Penn State Nittany Lions (8-1) LW 21
They have only one loss on the season and that was to the #2 ranked team in Alabama. But if you've seen Penn State play you know that their next losses will probably be coming soon. The Nittany Lions have a very good defense, but their offense is flat out awful. They get no consistent QB play and the running game isn't very good either. Joe Paterno got his record setting 409th career win in the game, but needed a missed Illinois FG as time ended to win the game. They need to use the bye week to figure out the offense before a surging Nebraska team comes to town.
22. West Virginia Mountaineers (6-2) LW 23
In a snowy game at Rutgers the Mountaineers prevented a two game losing streak. West Virginia needed to come back from behind and did so relying on QB Geno Smith. Smith threw for 218 yards and 2 TDs, but it was his rushing TD in the 4th quarter which was the biggest. Now the Mountaineers must beat a Louisville team that just beat Syracuse who blew out West Virginia two weeks ago.
23. USC Trojans (6-2) LW NR
You don't usually see teams move up in the rankings after a loss, but when you take the #4 ranked team to the limits in triple OT you start to turn some heads. Despite all the drama that has happened at USC, they are quietly having a good season with only two losses (Stanford and Arizona State) and a remaining schedule that is winnable. The only tough game they have left is against Oregon who they should be able to hang with. For a team that doesn't have a whole lot to play for (can't play in the conference championship or a bowl game) but is still playing very hard.
24. Cincinnati Bearcats (6-1) LW NR
Not too many people have expected much from Cincinnati, especially since they struggled mightily last year after former HC Brian Kelly left. But quietly the Bearcats have gotten off to a 6-1 record and have a chance to win their 2nd Big East Title in three years. But they'll have to do it against the best the Big East has to offer.
25. Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (7-2) LW NR
Take away the Virginia and Miami games and the Yellow Jackets have played some of the best football in the ACC. That was shown in their huge victory over previously unbeaten Clemson. They got off to a great start against Clemson and because of their running game, they were able to play keep away and hold the explosive Clemson team to only 17 points. But the schedule doesn't get easier with #12 VaTech and #19 Georgia left on the schedule.
Almost Made It: Southern Miss
Dropped From Rankings: Texas A&M, Texas
No comments:
Post a Comment