It’s pretty unfortunate when a Mike Singletary-coached team can’t tackle, isn’t focused and decides to give up after one half of football.

In the past, I’ve been guilty (and I’m not the only one) of making default statements such as, “You know the 49ers will come to play against so-and-so because of Singletary,” and “You know the 49ers are always going to play hard under Singletary.”

But after watching the Seahawks completely embarrass the Niners in a 31-6 rout on Sunday afternoon, I won’t be making those statements again any time soon.

The 49ers’ performance was reminiscent of their game in San Francisco last year against the Falcons (a 45-10 loss). They didn’t tackle today, they didn’t play hard and when they got down 21-6 early in the third quarter, they should have just got onto the team bus and headed back to San Francisco because they displayed zero fight in the last 27 minutes and change.

Granted, it’s only Week 1 and the Niners are a good football team. But this is a game they have to win if they expect to compete for a division title. Or at the very least, show up for four quarters. Can you imagine what the post-game speech was like in the locker room afterwards? If Singletary didn’t eat someone’s face off I’d be shocked.

On the other side, Pete Carroll’s squad played inspired football. They held the Niners to only 49 yards rushing (granted, San Fran had to throw the ball the entire second half), forced two turnovers and were 3-of-4 in the red zone offensively.

Amazingly, Mike Williams (yes, that Mike Williams) led the team in catches with four. He racked up 64 receiving yards, which included a 35-yard grab that helped set up a touchdown in the first half, and also finished with a 16-yard-per-catch average.

If anyone would have told me back in January that the Seahawks’ first win wound come with Pete Carroll as their head coach and Mike Williams as their leading receiver, I would have totally bought it. I would have said, “Given what they did at USC together, I could see that. I could also see a Mike Singletary-led team not being able to tackle and Arian Foster single-handily beating the Colts. Also, I can totally see LeBron James staying in Cleveland. He loves it there.”

Stewart Mandel of SI.com takes a crack at predicting how the top 25 will look in college football next season.

1. Florida (13-1 in 2008)

Who’s back: QB Tim Tebow, DE Carlos Dunlap, LB Brandon Spikes, CB Joe Haden, S Ahmad Black.

Who’s not: WRs Percy Harvin* and Louis Murphy, T Phil Trautwein, G Jim Tartt.

Skinny: The defending champs return a former Heisman winner at quarterback, their top three tailbacks and, remarkably, their entire starting defense.

2. Texas (12-1)

Who’s back: QB Colt McCoy, WR Jordan Shipley, T Adam Ulatoski, LBs Sergio Kindle and Roddrick Muckelroy.

Who’s not: WR Quan Cosby, DE Brian Orakpo, DT Roy Miller, CB Ryan Palmer.

Skinny: McCoy and the offense should be potent again, and last year’s young secondary should improve with another year under Will Muschamp.

3. Oklahoma (12-2)

Who’s back: QB Sam Bradford, RBs DeMarco Murray and Chris Brown, TE Jermaine Gresham, DT Gerald McCoy.

Who’s not: WRs Jauquin Iglesias and Manuel Johnson, T Phil Loadholt, G Duke Robinson, S Nic Harris.

Skinny: Bradford’s return is huge for an offense that must retool its line and receiving corps. The defense has nine starters back from the BCS title game.

4. USC (12-1)
Who’s back: RBs C.J. Gable, Stafon Johnson and Joe McKnight, WR Damian Williams, S Taylor Mays.

Who’s not: QB Mark Sanchez*, DT Fili Moala, LBs Rey Maualuga and Brian Cushing, S Kevin Ellison.

Skinny: New QB Aaron Corp or Mitch Mustain will have a solid supporting cast. The defense loses a boatload of staples but should be able to reload.

5. Ole Miss (9-4)
Who’s back: QB Jevan Snead, RB/WR Dexter McCluster, DE Greg Hardy, CB Marshay Green, S Kendrick Lewis.

Who’s not: T Michael Oher, DT Peria Jerry, LBs Tony Fein and Ashlee Palmer.

Skinny: After knocking off Florida, LSU and Texas Tech, the Rebels are ready to take the next step behind star QB Snead. Hardy’s return is a huge boost.

The 2008 season isn’t even a month dead yet and already I miss college football. (Although not the constant playoff debate, which shouldn’t even be a debate at all if BCS-supporters could ever get their heads out of their asses and realize they ruin college football every year.)

I like seeing Ole’ Miss that high. As Mandel points out, the Rebs knocked off Florida, LSU and Texas Tech last year, and also gave Alabama a run for its money, too. Snead is the real deal and that’s a team that will be fun to watch next season.