I was on a work trip, so I missed the Penn State game. I missed most college games this week, well except some MAC games early in the week (more on that later). The Nittany Lions were able to beat Maryland 31-14, but it looks like a weird game. It was 7-6 through the first half and more than halfway through the third quarter. The defense did their job, but the offense seemed like it stalled a few times. Fortunately Jahan Dotson was able to take over the game and do his thing (242 yards, 3 TDs), plus a big interception by the defense made the game look more like a blowout than it actually was.
- Georgia (9-0)–they beat up Mizzou, like real good.
- Cincinnati (9-0)–they are not doing themselves any favors by continuously having close games with lesser opponents. Fortunately for them, the other teams did not look impressive either, so the rankings stay put.
- Alabama (8-1)–I had a feeling LSU would give them trouble, but not to this extent. 20-14…not impressive.
- Ohio State (8-1)–should have probably put a few more points on the Cornhuskers, if they had they could have leapfrogged Alabama.
- Oklahoma (9-0)–bye week
- Oregon (8-1)–they beat Washington…know who else beat Washington? Michigan. And when the Wolverines did it, the Huskies were ranked. What does that mean? Not much. But, I keep hearing people say that Ohio State should be below Oregon (as they are in the CFP rankings) because of the head-to-head. But I think you have to consider the circumstance and how each team is playing at the moment. Both teams are winning, but when I watch the Buckeyes, I see a top five team. Oregon? A top ten.
- Notre Dame (8-1)–they had no problem with Navy. Keep winning ND, it makes the Bearcats look good.
- Michigan State (8-1)–I was not nearly as high on MSU as the CFP or the other ranking sites and for good reason. Purdue made them look silly.
- Michigan (8-1)–the Wolverines handled the Hoosiers easily.
- Oklahoma State (8-1)–they crushed WVU. They held the Moutaineers to 133 total yards. They had eight sacks. Weird when the Big 12 plays defense.
- Texas A&M (7-2)–they took down Auburn and continue to just rumble along. They need Arkansas or Auburn to upset Alabama to give them a chance at playing Georgia in the SEC Championship (here is a crazy scenario…what if Texas A&M wins out and Alabama loses to Auburn, then Texas A&M beats Georgia in that game…who gets in???).
- Ole Miss (7-2)–I had Liberty in my honorable mention and Ole Miss beat them by two scores.
- BYU (7-2)–meh, they crushed Idaho State.
- Iowa (7-2)–they beat Northwestern 17-12…
- Wake Forest (8-1)–giving up 50 points in a bunch of games is probably not the best way to go undefeated.
- NC State (7-2)–a win over Florida State…
- Coastal Carolina (8-1)–how will they do without McCall? Just fine in this one…
- Pitt (7-2)–they beat up Duke.
- UTSA (9-0)–is it time to start considering them as a legit team? I am not quite ready yet.
- Baylor (7-2)–lost to TCU, yikes.
- Houston (8-1)–they beat South Florida.
- Louisiana-Lafayette (8-1)–had trouble with Georgia State…
- San Diego State (8-1)–the Aztecs love to play a close game.
- Appalachian State (7-2)–yeah, I love them and may be biased.
- Purdue (6-3)–if I am going to rank a three loss team, it has to be the one that took down a #2 and #3 in the same year.
Honorable Mention: Penn State (6-3), Wisconsin (6-3), Auburn (6-3), Arkansas (6-3), SMU (7-2), Liberty (7-3), Minnesota (6-3), Kentucky (6-3), Iowa State (6-3), Utah (6-3), Arizona State (6-3)
Like I said earlier, I watched a few MAC games this week (love a good Tuesday night game!). If I get time, I want to look and see how good each conference is when playing other conferences. If you look at records, it looks like the MAC is one of the worst conferences, but when I watch them play, they seem like they may be one of the better conferences (yep, this seems like a project involving a spreadsheet).
Some cool games next week. If you want a fun one on Thursday: UNC at Pitt should be a defense optional game. Probably a good bet to take the over. Michigan comes to Penn State. The Nittany Lions need this win to get back into any type of rankings (not that those things matter if you are outside the top fifteen). The other game to keep an eye on is Ohio State and Purdue. Can the Boilermakers continue to ruin seasons? I hope so. The big game this week is obviously Alabama and New Mexico State. I am kidding! Texas A&M at Ole Miss.
