Top 10 Rewind:
1. Ohio State (12-0)
Ohio State-USC for a national championship? I can certainly hang with that. I think if Florida beats Arkansas, the Gators have a legitimate grip over not getting a chance at a title. However, after watching the Trojans dismantle Notre Dame, I don’t know if there is a better game than USC-OSU. Michigan-OSU is great from a rivalry standpoint, but then again, the Wolverines already had their shot.
2. Michigan (11-1)
The potential Rose Bowl match up seems to pit Michigan vs. California. Is it just me or does that contest seem rather lame?
3. USC (10-1)
You can check out my Notre Dame-USC recap here.
Next Game: at. UCLA, Dec. 2.
4. Florida (11-1)
Florida survived a couple of big plays and turnovers to hold onto a 21-14 victory over the rival FSU. Couple things from the game: One, play-by-play announcer Gary Thorn either drank gallons of coffee or loaded up on sugar before the game. I swear every time a pass was caught or a tailback broke one tackle the guy lost it in the booth by screaming what a play it was. Settle down chief, save the screaming for a game-ending play. Secondly, FSU quarterback Drew Weatherford is outright terrible. As much as the Seminole defense tried to keep FSU in the game, Weatherford equally tried to give the contest away. Weatherford threw three interceptions, including one that was picked off in the end zone in the third quarter that killed an FSU scoring opportinuty. On TV it almost looked like the kid didn’t even care about winning the game. Next up for the Gators – take care of business next week against Arkansas in the SEC Championship game and then start lobbying how you’re more deserving than USC.
Next Game: vs. Arkansas, Dec. 2.
5. Arkansas (10-2)
What amazes me about Arkansas’s 31-26 loss to LSU on Friday is how these borderline national championship teams continue to choke its chances away at the end of the season. Pundits fought for West Virginia, then Louisville, then Rutgers. Then it was Arkansas that deserved a chance. Maybe there’s a reason why we continue to see the big boys competing for a national title every year. Either way, the BCS system continues to get let off the hook, especially if the Razorbacks knock off the Gators next week in the SEC Championship. These “potentials” continue to fall and the BCS is able to justify not having a playoff format. And once again, the fans continue to lose.
Next Game: at. Florida, Dec. 2.
6. Notre Dame (10-2)
You can check out my Notre Dame-USC recap here.
7. West Virginia (9-2)
South Florida took advantage of four Mountaineer turnovers to defeat West Virginia 24-19. What a shocker, another Big East program gets knocked out of the top 10. It’s amazing how just three weeks ago, three Big East teams were ranked in the top 10, now the conference will be lucky to have one. Allow me to give credit where credit is due, however. To go into Virginia and knock off the No. 7 team in the nation is impressive. South Florida is no cupcake either, as the Bulls end their season 8-4. The amazing thing about South Florida’s victory was holding Steve Slaton and Pat White to a combined 60 yards rushing. That’s quite a drop off from the two sophomore’s usual output of about 1,000 yards a game.
Next Game: vs. Rutgers, Dec. 2.
8. Louisville (10-1)
The Cardinals smacked around a lifeless second-half Pittsburgh team 48-24. Quarterback Brian Brohm threw for 337 yards and four touchdowns. Brohm was an impressive 21-of-29 passing as Mario Urrutia hauled in seven receptions for 144 yards and one touchdown. It’s kind of ironic that Louisville will more than likely finish the season ahead of West Virginia. After losing to Rutgers, the Cardinals were cast aside quickly, even though Louisville beat the Mountaineers a week before the defeat. It’s just interesting how things come full circle sometimes in college football.
Next Game: vs. Connecticut, Dec. 2.
9. LSU (8-2)
The Tigers 31-26 win over was Arkansas was big in my eyes. Not only did LSU knock an SEC rival out of contention for a national title, but the Tigers also prove that they could win a big game this season. When you’re beating up Tulane and Arizona, but falling to Auburn and Florida, there’s obviously not much creditability there. However, you knock off one of the SEC Championship teams in Arkansas on its home turf and now you have something to build on heading into a bowl game. Nice win LSU.
10. Wisconsin (11-1)
As of right now, it looks like Wisconsin might play Arkansas in the Capitol One Bowl. If that were the case, Darren McFadden vs. P.J. Hill would be quite a running back dual.
Most impressed with: South Florida holding both Steve Slaton and Pat White under 100 combined rushing yards. That’s amazing considering both Slaton and White usually crack 150 yards on the ground apiece.
Least impressed with: West Virginia, Texas and Notre Dame were the biggest flubs of the weekend. But at least the Irish can say they lost to a USC team that is probably heading to a national championship.
Biggest upset: How about Texas A&M going into Austin and knocking off Texas 12-7 on Friday? The Aggies haven’t defeated the Long Horns in six straight meetings and held a Texas offense to just one touchdown after coming into the game averaging close to 40 points a game. Texas QB Colt McCoy was just hammered on more than one occasion throughout the game. He seemed okay, but McCoy left the field on a stretcher. Welcome to the A&M-Texas rivalry freshman.
Looking forward: Arkansas vs. Florida tops the list as far as big games, but many eyes will be on UCLA-USC to see if the Trojans will get tripped up at the end of the season.
