Grab Bag Time!

I'm sure my millions of readers world wide have noticed that CFB365 has been a little slow lately. Well, more like a lot slow. Truth is I've been incredibly busy lately. Contrary to popular belief, I do in fact have a life. And since I can't find a competent co-writer for this blog, when I have little downtime, this illustrious site suffers.

Since I've been M.I.A. for a while, I thought it would be nice to throw a bunch of crap together in one single post. There's really no rhyme or reason to any of this, just a bunch of random thoughts about college football at this point in the season.

Enjoy!
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Coaching Carousel

There's already been a few firings this season. Both Tommy West of Memphis and Mike Sanford of UNLV have received the pink slip from their bosses. While both Memphis and UNLV are out looking for that next great coach that no one has ever heard of, I thought I should take a look at a few other schools that I will probably be right there with them in the next few weeks.

Notre Dame - Out: Charlie Weis - No obligatory "coaches on the hot seat" discussion can officially begin until Charlie Weis is mentioned. Weis is proving to everyone what this here blogger has always known: The man cannot coach! He's good at calling offensive plays, but he will never have what it takes to run an entire team. Finally, after 5 seasons, the Irish will let him go. In: Brian Kelly - Kelly is the favorite to accept the Notre Dame coaching vacancy when it becomes available. Of course the Irish will contact Urban Meyer and Bobby Stoops, but it is widely believed both of those coaches will give ND a big "No Thank You!".


Virginia - Out: Al Groh - Groh has made a habit of saving his job with late season pushes. This season has been different. With the amount of talent that Groh has been able to amass at UVA, it is hard to believe that they have never seriously contended for an ACC crown. In: Skip Holtz - This is basically the same move I was calling for at the end of last season. Holtz has done a great job of keeping East Carolina at the top of C-USA. Time to see what he can do at a BCS level program.


Louisville - Out: Steve Kragthorpe - Was in over his head as soon as he took the job. Perhaps he can take over for some C-USA or MWC school (I'm thinking UTEP or UNLV). Kragthorpe just doesn't have what it takes to coach a BCS school. And supposedly, that's what Louisville is. In: Charlie Strong - As much as I would hate to see Charlie leave the Florida sideline, he deserves to be a head coach somewhere. The best way to turn around a falling program is to start with defense. I think Strong is pretty decent on that side of the ball.


Akron - Out: J.D. Brookhart - Brookhart should be the first of these coaches to go. He has put together absolutely nothing during his tenure at Akron. In: Chuck Martin - All Martin has done is win two national titles at Division II Grand Valley St. Some would argue if Akron is actually a step up for Martin, but I'm sure he could use the Zips as a nice stepping stone. You have to look no further than former GVSU head coach Brian Kelly to provide an example.


Kansas - Out: Mark Mangino - I really don't see how Mangino can keep his job after this season. Even if the allegations turn out to be false, the damage has already been done. No parent in their right mind would send their kid to play for Kansas while Mangino is roaming the sideline. In: Kevin Sumlin - Sumlin has done a tremendous job in his short stint at Houston. Who's to say he's not the next Urban Meyer?
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Heisman Race

This year's Heisman race has been anything but clear. There are a bunch of good players, but no real great performances really stand out. Here's how I would vote for the Heisman if I actually had a vote.


Toby Gerhart - Stanford RB - All the pub at the running back position has been surrounding Mark Ingram this year. While I think Ingram is a great player, there is no doubt in my mind that Gerhart is a better back. The only thing hurting Toby is that he plays for Stanford and not an SEC or Big Eleven school. The USC game should have earned him a few more votes.





Mark Ingram - Alabama RB - Ingram is the best player on what is arguably the best team in the country. Just think. Where would Bama be without Ingram? Probably not undefeated and getting ready to play Florida in the SEC championship.







C.J. Spiller - Clemson RB - He can run. pass, catch, and return kicks and punts for touchdowns, One of the more exciting players in the nation, it's a shame that C.J. might not even get an invite to NYC this year.










Tim Tebow - Florida QB - I'll admit, this is more of a lifetime achievement vote than anything. However, Timmy is the QB for the number one team in the country. That's gotta count for something. A big game against FSU could catapult him even further on this list.










Colt McCoy - Texas QB - Pretty much the same as Tebow, this is a lifetime achievement vote. The only reason why I even have these two players is because there is a lack of other viable candidates. Plus they are both quarterbacks of undefeated teams.
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Rivalry Week

This weekend is loaded with traditional rivalry games. For the most part these games are played for state bragging rights and recruiting superiority. Here's a quick look at some of my personal favorite games of this weekend. (Note: Oregon v. Oregon St. is one of my favorite games, but it is not listed since they will be playing next week. I hope to have more material to discuss the Civil War in the coming days.)

Florida v. Florida St. - Of course this was gonna be one of my favorite games. The Gators have dominated this rivalry in the Urban Meyer era. However, the series is even since Good 'Ol Bobby came to Tallahassee. This game will be extra special as it will be the last game at the Swamp for Seniors Tim Tebow and Brandon Spikes.






Alabama v. Auburn - The Iron Bowl returned back to Alabama's favor with last years victory. The win erased all the bitter memories created by Tommy Tuberville. If Auburn can pull off the upset this week, they will knock Bama out of the title picture (unless they can bounce back and beat Florida in Atlanta). Now tell me that's not something Auburn will be playing out of their minds to do.




Washington v. Washington St. - The Apple Cup might not have the records and title implications that other rivalry games have this year. But you can throw all that crap out the window when the Cougs and Huskies get set to do battle. I truly enjoy this game ever year. It's a shame it's not the traditional last game on the schedule this season.






BYU v. Utah - The Holy War is always a good game to watch. This one has no MWC title implications, but the two teams hate each just the same.








Clemson v. South Carolina - The Battle for the Palmetto State just hasn't been the same since the two teams decided to duke it out on the field a few years ago. It just seems a little tame as of late. A win against Clemson could turn Spurrier's season around for the better.
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BCS Bowl Game Predictions

Here's the way I see the BCS shaping up.


Orange Bowl - Cincinnati v. Georgia Tech - The Big East and ACC champs will meet in what will easily be the most boring bowl game of the season. Should be a nice farewell victory for Brian Kelly before he leaves to take over the Notre Dame job.


Fiesta Bowl - Oklahoma St. v. TCU - A high powered offense meets a very stingy defense. I like TCU's chances of continuing the MWC tradition of destroying BCS opponents in BCS bowl games.


Sugar Bowl - Alabama v. Boise St. - I just think there will be too much pressure on the BCS commissioners to include an undefeated Boise St/ team in this year's festivities. Even though a team like Penn St. will most likely get this invite, it would be nice to see the Broncos shred the Crimson Tide defense.


Rose Bowl - Oregon v. Ohio St. - While I wouldn't be surprised if this were Oregon St., I think the Ducks are the favorite to represent the PAC-10 in this year's Rose Bowl. Of course, keeping with tradition, Oregon will dismantle Ohio St.


BCS National Championship - Florida v. Texas - I think both Florida and Texas will survive rivalry week and their conference championship unscathed. Setting up what should be an exciting title game. Tebow v. McCoy could go down as one of the best QB match-ups of all time.
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Ultimate Fantasy League Update

For those of you that have been following CFB365's Ultimate Fantasy League, I commend you. For those of you that haven't, good luck following this segment. It's conference championship time in the UFL. Here are the match-ups. Remember, each conference champion gets an automatic bid into the 16 team playoff starting next week.

SEC - Florida v. Alabama - Just like real life, these two teams will meet to decide the SEC Championship. Bama was one of only two teams to go through the regular season undefeated. This is easily the best match-up of the conference championship week.


Big XII - Texas v. Nebraska - Nebraska overtook Kansas on the last week of the season to earn a spot in the title game. Texas was able to fend off a surging TCU team. This should be a blowout win for the Longhorns. We'll see....


Big Ten - Ohio St. v. Iowa - For awhile there it looked like the Big Ten would be decided by a title game between Wisconsin and Iowa St. However, things evened out the last 2 weeks of the season and the two best teams in the conference will meet. Ohio St. is the obvious favorite.


PAC 10 - Arizona v. Boise St. - The Wildcats used the early stumbles by California to secure their spot in this game early on. Boise St. has been the most consistent team in this conference. I think everyone is a little surprised that USC wasn't even a factor in the conference title race.


ACC - Virginia Tech v. South Florida - The Bulls reach the title game by default. Although they were able to keep East Carolina from wrecking the party. Either way, Va Tech is the odds on favorite to win this one.


Big East - Penn St. v. Cincinnati - Cincinnati was the other undefeated team that I alluded to earlier. This might actually turn out to be a close call. Penn St. did suffer two late season losses, including one to Cincy. We'll see if they can rebound and secure their spot in the playoffs.


Mountain West - Houston v. Colorado St. - Colorado St. held off Baylor to avoid an ALL-Texas Title Tilt in the MWC. The Rams have to be one of the biggest surprises of the season in the UFL. We'll see if they can keep their luck going against the Cougars.
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CFB 365 Top 25

More teams in the top 25 won than lost this week. There weren't too many shake ups. I wonder if Notre Dame fans will stop bugging me for not including the Irish in the top 25 now. I ranked Notre Dame in my top 25 for the first time last week and they went out and lost to Navy.

Here's how they rank this week.


1. Alabama Crimson Tide - Bama took care of LSU this week. Easily the biggest victory of any of the Big three. Julio Jones finally re-appeared. We can now officially start talking about a Florida-Alabama SEC Championship.





2. Texas Longhorns - Colt McCoy strengthened his Heisman candidacy with a huge day against UCF. Jordan Shipley is also starting to get some Heisman buzz after his big receiving day. Still, a win over UCF at home isn't the stuff championship teams are made of.





3. Florida Gators - The Gators complete the top three once again this week. I've already gone into detail on my thoughts about their Vandy victory in an earlier post. They'll need to pick it up next week against the Cocks.





4. Cincinnati Bearcats - Cincy barely squeaked by Connecticut on Saturday. Despite defensive struggles against the Huskies, Cincinnati remains undefeated. The most surprising thing about their current run is the fact that they are doing it without Tony Pike. The schedule is only going to get harder from here on out.




5. TCU Horned Frogs - I guess you can finally count me in among the believers of the Frogs. All the media attention and love fest for TCU finally wore me down. Add to that the fact that Boise St. struggled to put away Louisiana Tech this week and you can see why TCU climbed into my top 5.




6. Boise St. Broncos - Boise St. gets knocked out of my top 5 by TCU this week. There's not too much time left for the Broncos to prove themselves, plus the Oregon loss makes their win against the Ducks look a little less impressive.





7. Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets - Georgia Tech coach Paul Johnson went all ballsy against Wake Forest in overtime by going for it on fourth and one trailing in overtime. The Yellow Jackets turned that move into a game winning touchdown a few plays later. Ga Tech seems to be pulling away from the ACC pack. Then again, I've said the exact same thing about Virginia Tech and Miami this season.



8. Pittsburgh Panthers - Pitt and Cincy are on a collision course for a de facto Big East Championship game. With Jahvid Best's scary injury against Oregon St., Dion Lewis is now the nation's top back.






9. Miami(FL) Hurricanes - The Canes climb back into the top ten after they demolished an improved Virginia team at home on Saturday. Miami still has a decent resume, including handing Georgia Tech it's only loss of the season.





10. Iowa Hawkeyes - The Hawkeyes slide out of the top 5 after their loss to Northwestern. They remain in the top 10, however. This is partly because the Hawkeyes loss came with a back-up Freshman quarterback in the game. Also, Iowa only has 1 loss. There's not too many one loss teams left in the country.




11. Oregon Ducks - Oregon falls out of the top ten after losing to Stanford this weekend. The PAC-10, much like the ACC and the Big XII North seem to be races that no one is stepping up in. The Ducks loss only makes things much more cloudy in the conference.





12. USC Trojans - Speaking of the PAC-10, their case has not been helped out at all by the suddenly mediocre USC Trojans. I actually think their 14-9 victory over the Arizona St. Sun Devils was more embarrassing than last week's thumping at the hands of Oregon.





13. Utah Utes - Utah was struggling despite winning their games heading into this week. Good thing for the Utes they payed San Diego St. this week. The Aztecs put up little resistance to Utah as the Utes now turn their attention to Mountain West front runner TCU.





14. LSU Tigers - The Tigers looked like they might have been able to pull off the upset over Bama this weekend. Unfortunately, the Tiger secondary forgot how to cover anyone or tackle. As a side note, it was strangely eerie to hear all the Gator fans on campus this week cheering for a LSU victory.




15. Ohio St. Buckeyes - Terrelle Pryor and the Buckeyes finally came out the victor in a "big game." Amazingly, Ohio St. can still win the Big Eleven if they can knock off Iowa, setting up yet another BCS loss.






16. Houston Cougars - Houston barely escaped with a late second field goal over Tulsa on Saturday. Case Keenum is still a dark horse Heisman contender.






17. Arizona Wildcats - Zona is still n the hunt for the PAC-10 title. Their contest against Cal became a little bit easier with the news that Jahvid Best is going to sit out with a concussion.






18. Oklahoma St. Cowboys - OSU held off the suddenly decent Iowa St. Cyclones on Saturday. Does anybody really care?







19. Penn St. Nittany Lions - Penn St. coughed up their shot at a Big Eleven title with their loss to the Buckeyes this week. Penn St. could still play themselves into a BCS game if they win out and get some help.






20. South Florida Bulls - USF was one of the few teams in the country that enjoyed a bye week this week. That helped them move up a few spots in this week's poll.






21. Wisconsin Badgers - The Badgers scored an impressive win over Indiana this week. The Hoosiers looked out matched the entire game. Something even Iowa was not able to do. Surprisingly, the Badgers still have an outside shot of winning the Big Eleven crown.





22. Virginia Tech Hokies - Virginia Tech avenged last season's disastrous loss to East Carolina on Thursday. Va Tech managed to avoid the distraction of what is quite possibly the ugliest alternate helmet in college football. What the hell was ECU thinking?





23. Oregon St. Beavers - It came down to Oregon St. and Stanford for this spot. Stanford's recent win over Oregon was a bit more impressive than the Beaver's win against Cal this week. However, OSU wins the head to head match up over the Cardinal. Jacquizz Radgers may be the best back in the PAC-10.




24. BYU Cougars - BYU climbs back into my top 25 after a few week's hiatus. If TCU loses twice and BYU knocks off Utah, the cougars will win the Mountain West. That's probably not going to happen. But they can dream, can't they?





25. West Virginia Mountaineers - West Virginia hangs on to the 25th spot this week. They hold off Clemson, Stanford, Temple and Auburn for the coveted spot.

Gators Own The Night

You know what the say. "Vanderbilt always plays us tough." Still, you would expect the Gators to have put on a little better of a show under the lights vs. the Dores. Tebow may have played one of his worst games in the Orange and Blue, despite what the stats say. Superman just looked a little lost out there last night. The running game was stagnant out there for most of the game. the Gators dd finally do a good job of limiting Chris Rainey's carries for once.

If anything, the game provided a good tune up for the home stretch for the Gators. The offense was a little vanilla, but that may be because Urb doesn't really feel the need to expand the playbook. Despite the lack of offensive ingenuity, the Gators did rack up just under 400 total yards.

The defense was stellar once again. Ryan Stamper and Dustin Doe filled in for Brandon Spikes quite nicely. The secondary was as dominant as it has been all season long. Janoris Jenkins and Joe Haden absolutely shut down Vandy's passing "attack." If I have one complaint about the defense, it was the lack of penetration in the backfield. Florida was held sackless, and they gave up quite a few long runs to Warren Norman.

In honor of the annoying ass Vanderbilt fan that sat behind me at the game. Here are the stats:

Passing

Tim Tebow 15-20 208 yds 1 td
John Brantley 3-3 19 yds

Rushing

Jeff Demps 7 rushes 57 yds 1 td
Emanuel Moody 8 rushes 34 yds
Tim Tebow 16 rushes 27 yds 1 td
Brandon James 2 rushes 18 yds
Chris Rainey 4 rushes 12 yds

Receiving

Aaron Hernandez 7 recs 120 yds
Brandon James 4 recs 44 yds
David Nelson 3 recs 28 yds 1 td
Deonte Thompson 1 rec 16 yds

Field Goals

Caleb Sturgis 2/2 long - 45 yds

Tackles

Dustin Doe 11 tckls
Ryan Stamper 6 tckls
Carlos Dunlap 5 tckls
Ahmad Black 5 tckls
Jon Bostic 5 tckls

Interceptions

Ryan Stamper 1 int


Player of The Game

Ryan Stamper - Linebacker, Interception Machine

Is there any linebacker in the nation that's better at finding the ball in the air and picking it off? Well, yeah. But Brandon Spikes sat this game out, and A.J. Jones didn't register an int. So the honor is Stamper's for now. Stamper was also one of the few players, along with Dustin Doe, to get consistent pressure on the Vanderbilt offense. It was nice to see Stamper really step up in the absence of Spikes. The linebacker unit will be back at full strength next week. That's bad news for Stephen Garcia.

Florida-Vanderbilt Preview

It's time for the annual grudge match between two hated rivals. Vandy's coming to town!!! The past few years, the Dores have managed to make it to the Florida game with a decent shot at making a bowl. That's not the case this year. Bobby Johnson's bunch have stumbled and fumbled their way to a 2-7 mark.

I really don't have much to say about this game. I hope the Gators are more fired up and ready to play than I am to watch it. I've already begun the countdown to South Carolina.


5 Keys to the Game

1. Play With Emotion - The Gators certainly need to play with more emotion than I have for doing this preview. If Florida comes out flat, they will struggle against yet another inferior SEC opponent. This shouldn't happen. Florida can see the finish line and they should be willing to do all that they can to reach that line undefeated.

2. Score Touchdowns in the Red Zone - Getting a little success in the red zone during this game could go a long way in determining how the Gators will finish the season. I like Caleb Sturgis and all, but I only want to see him on the field to kick extra points and kick-offs after touchdowns.

3. Pad Tebow's Stats - Tebow is still in the race for this year's Heisman. I'm never one to call for an individual to pad his stats. However, securing his second Heisman Trophy would pretty much seal Tebow's fate as one of the greatest college football players of all time. What better chance to pad your Heisman stats than against a Vandy team that just gave up 50+ points to Georgia Tech?

4. Don't Give Rainey The Ball - For one, he's coming off an injury. No need to risk further damaging it before the South Carolina game. For two, Rainey seems to always stall the offense when he's in the game. Florida will be driving down field, ripping off 5 yards a play. Then the ball would go to Rainey. Stuffed at the line. Happens all the freakin' time.

5. No Eye Gouging - This shouldn't be a problem as Brandon Spikes has now officially taken himself out of the entire game this week.


5 Players That Need To Step Up

1. Brandon Hicks - Hicks will probably get the starting nod on Saturday with Spikes out of the line-up. Believe it or not, there shouldn't be too much of a drop in production. Hicks could easily be the best linebacker on every other team in the conference. He's that damn good.

2. Brandon James - I'm still waiting on Brandon James to do something in the return game. We haven't seen anything that exciting since the Charleston Southern game. He should get some opportunity against this Vandy squad. I also think James should get more touches coming out of the backfield. We've completely gone away from that this season.

3. David Nelson - In order for Tebow to pad his passing stats, he's gonna need someone other than Riley Cooper and Aaron Hernandez to step up. I'm tired of talking about Deonte Thompson, so I'm gonna turn my attention to Mr. Nelson. He should have a big day against a very weak Vanderbilt secondary.

4. Emmanuel Moody - With Rainey dinged up and Manny running better and better each week, there's really no reason why he shouldn't get the bulk of the carries this week. Moody had himself a good day last year against a much better Vandy defense. I expect him to break the 100 yard mark for the first time this season.

5. Duke Lemmens - Duke has really been stepping his game up these past few weeks. If he continues to play this well, he will just be another dangerous weapon in Florida's front 7 defensively. Cunningham, Trattou, Dunlap and Marsh should get some rest this week, so expect Lemmens to come up big.

Here's some highlights from last year's Gators victory over the Dores.




Here's some Vandy fan's take on Meyer calling out the refs for the no-call on the late hit to Tebow last week.

I know, it's hard to believer for me too. There actually is such a thing as Vanderbilt fans.



My Prediction:

Florida - 55

Vanderbilt - 12

"Eye" Gate

The entire college football world is talking about Brandon Spikes this week. Not because he' the best linebacker in the country, or the leader of one of the best defenses in the nation. Instead they are talking about his eye gouging of Georgia running back Washaun Ealey.

I've been listening to all kinds of differing opinions this week, and I thought it was time for me to share my own.

While I think intentionally trying to mame someone is reprehensibly wrong, I think Spikes is being unfairly singled out here. Eye gouging, crotch grabbing, gut punching, spitting, biting and pinching all take place in a typical dog-pile. Spikes was just dumb enough to get caught this time. All the people out there calling for a 3 game suspension should take a step back and look at their own program for a second. I'm sure if you ask anyone on any team, they will tell you it happens all the time.

I don't believe 2 wrongs make a right, but if you watch the game film, early in the first quarter Spikes had his helmet ripped off. While he was helmetless, a Georgia player intentionally head butted him. Who out there would not be pissed off if this were to happen to you. Now, Spikes should have handled that situation right then and there instead of stewing on the sidelines for 2 quarters plotting his revenge. That's where I think Spikes is wrong in all of this.

The other part of this that is getting Florida criticized is the half game suspension for Spikes. I agree with everyone out there. This suspension is a joke. I think it would be in Florida's best interest to suspend Spikes for the whole game. For one, it's Vanderbilt and Spikes is not necessarily needed to win the game. Plus, Meyer could have averted all this extra criticism from the media and Gator Haters.

Now, everyone calling for Spikes' head should read some of Ealey's comments about the incident. If you're too lazy to click on the link, Ealey is basically saying that all that stuff was happening on both sides of the ball on Saturday. Ealey also said that he didn't think Spikes should be suspended, mainly because he didn't even come close to his eyes. I have to give some props to Ealey on this one. He's showing a lot of class coming out to defend Spikes.

For the other side of the argument, take a look at Pat Forde's usually unbiased and well-written Forde-Yard Dash. My favorite part of the article was a comment left by one of the readers:

"Pat Forde, you're an idiot. I wish Brandon Spikes would gouge my eyes out so I wouldn't have to read any more of your articles. ESPN should suspend you for stupidity."

That is just classic.

One thing that is being overlooked in "Eye" Gate was this blatant no-cal against Nick Williams. They don't get much worse than this.



Watching all this drama unfold does remind me of one thing:



That was one of the worst things I've seen in a football game, mainly because it caused serious injury to Earnest Graham. There are Seminole fans to this day that deny Dockett did anything wrong that day.

Ultimate Fantasy League Update

I got a few e-mails last week after posting the Fantasy League Update. After complimenting me on my genius, they would all ask me the same question. "What the hell is up with that fantasy league?"

So, since there are some people out there who don't know how to use the labels or archives function on this blog, I'll be the gentleman that I am and make it easy for you.

Here's the original write up of my fantasy league. This was actually the post that got me back into blogging after a much needed hiatus.

Here's my explanation of why the conferences look the way they do.

Now that that's out of the way, it's on to this week's update.


SEC

East

1. Florida 8-1 (6-1)
2. Tennessee 5-4 (4-4)
3. Georgia Tech 5-4 (3-3)
4. Georgia 5-4 (3-3)
5. Clemson 4-5 (2-4)
6. South Carolina 4-5 (2-4)

West

1. Alabama 9-0 (6-0)
2. LSU 7-2 (6-1)
3. Ole Miss 6-3 (4-3)
4. Auburn 4-5 (2-5)
5. Mississippi St. 3-6 (0-6)
6. Kentucky 2-7 (1-6)

Big XII


North

1. Kansas 7-2 (6-1)
2. Nebraska 5-4 (4-2)
3. Missouri 5-4 (2-4)
4. Kansas St. 4-5 (3-4)
5. Arkansas 3-6 (2-5)
6. Colorado 1-8 (1-5)

South

1. Texas 8-1 (6-1)
2. TCU 7-2 (6-2)
3. Oklahoma St. 7-2 (4-2)
4. Oklahoma 4-5 (3-4)
5. Texas Tech 3-6 (3-5)
6. Texas A&M 3-6 (2-5)

PAC 10

North

1. Boise St. 8-1 (6-0)
2. Oregon St. 7-2 (5-1)
3. Oregon 6-3 (4-2)
4. Washington 3-6 (3-3)
5. Stanford 3-6 (1-5)
6. Washington St. 0-9 (0-6)

South


1. Arizona 6-3 (4-2)
2. USC 5-4 (5-2)
3. California 5-4 (3-3)
4. UCLA 3-6 (3-3)
5. San Diego St. 3-6 (1-5)
6. Arizona St. 2-7 (2-5)


Big Ten

East

1. Wisconsin 7-2 (5-1)
2. Ohio St. 6-3 (5-1)
3. Minnesota 5-4 (3-4)
4. Northwestern 4-5 (2-4)
5. Purdue 2-7 (1-6)
6. Illinois 1-8 (1-6)

West

1. Iowa 7-2 (5-2)
2. Notre Dame 6-3 (5-2)
3. Michigan St. 5-4 (4-3)
4. Iowa St. 5-4 (3-3)
5. Indiana 5-4 (2-4)
6. Michigan 4-5 (2-4)

ACC


Atlantic

1. Virginia Tech 8-1 (6-0)
2. Miami 7-2 (6-1)
3. Virginia 5-4 (4-2)
4. Louisville 3-6 (3-5)
5. North Carolina 2-7 (2-5)
6. North Carolina St. 1-8 (1-5)

Coastal

1. South Florida 6-3 (5-2)
2. Florida St. 5-4 (3-4)
3. East Carolina 4-5 (3-4)
4. Duke 3-6 (3-3)
5. Wake Forest 3-6 (3-4)
6. Maryland 1-8 (1-6)


Big East


North

1. Penn St. 8-1 (5-1)
2. Boston College 7-2 (5-1)
3. Connecticut 4-5 (3-3)
4. Rutgers 4-5 (3-4)
5. Syracuse 1-8 (1-6)
6. Army 1-8 (0-6)


South

1. Cincinnati 9-0 (7-0)
2. Pittsburgh 7-2 (5-1)
3. West Virginia 6-3 (5-1)
4. Navy 4-5 (2-5)
5. Vanderbilt 3-6 (1-6)
6. Central Florida 2-7 (2-6)

Mountain West

Mountain

1. Colorado St. 6-3 (5-2)
2. Baylor 5-4 (4-2)
3. Southern Miss 4-5 (4-3)
4. Louisiana Tech 3-6 (3-3)
5. Troy 3-6 (3-4)
6. Air Force 3-6 (3-4)

West

1. Houston 8-1 (5-1)
2. BYU 5-4 (4-2)
3. Tulsa 5-4 (4-2)
4. Utah 3-6 (3-3)
5. Wyoming 2-7 (1-6)
6. UNLV 0-9 (0-7)

CFB 365 Top 25

The top schools actually played like top schools this week. For the most part that is. Seven of the top 9 teams are undefeated. Oregon and LSU are the only 1 loss teams in that realm. Here's how they rank:


1. Alabama Crimson Tide - The Tide enjoyed the week off. They'll face a monster test next week against LSU.







2. Texas Longhorns - The Longhorns once again played an impressive game this week. Texas had no problems knocking off Oklahoma St. on the road. It's clear that this team is the class of the Big XII. Every remaining game on UT's schedule is extremely winnable.





3. Florida Gators - Florida played their first real impressive game since their win against Kentucky. The Gators stay at number three, however, due to Texas' very big win over Ok St. The Gators should roll again next week against Vandy, They've held up their end of the SEC Championship rematch vs. Bama.




4. Cincinnati Bearcats - Cincy is rolling right along despite the absence of Quarterback Tony Pike. Zach Collaros is proving to be more than capable of filling in for the injured Pike. His touchdown pass on a botched field goal against Syracuse was the play of the day for the Bearcats. Even though it shouldn't have counted due to the entire offensive line being down field.



5. Boise St. Broncos - Another weak WAC opponent, another big win for the Broncos. Boise St. had no trouble with San Jose St., just as they should have no trouble with the remained of their schedule. It will be real interesting to see what the BCS does with an undefeated Boise St. and an undefeated TCU.




6. Iowa Hawkeyes - Another weak Big Eleven opponent, another close victory for the Hawkeyes. Iowa is proving to be the captain of fourth quarter comebacks. We'll see how long they can keep it up. The rest of their schedule is extremely manageable. Which means we're in for more slim victories.




7. Oregon Ducks - The Ducks jump a few teams in this week's poll. Jeremiah Masoli and LaMichael James were very impressive in the huge win over the Trojans. The Ducks are now the best one loss team in the country.





8. LSU Tigers - LSU slides a few spots. That's what they get for playing Tulane. I know the annual match-up with the Green Wave is supposed to be an in-state rivalry game, but come on! It's never going to be competitive. Time for the Tigers to opt out of that one.





9. TCU Horned Frogs - TCU dominated UNLV this week. Beating up on one of the worst teams in the nation is not all that impressive. That's why TCU is the lowest ranked unbeaten team in my poll.






10. Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets - Ga Tech allowed Vanderbilt to hang in the game for nearly 3 and a half quarters. That's when Paul Johnson's bunch unleashed a fury of points to pull away from the Commodores. The Yellow Jackets are clearly the best team in a very weak ACC right now.




11. Penn St. Nittany Lions - Penn St. beat up on another out matched Big Eleven team this week. We'll get to see how good the Nittany Lions are when they take on the Ohio St. Buckeyes next week.






12. USC Trojans - USC slides out of the top 5 after being throttled by Oregon on Saturday night. The only thing that kept the Trojans from sliding further is the fact that there aren't really too many teams that are worthy of being moved up.





13. Miami(FL) Hurricanes - Miami escaped from Winston-Salem with a slim win over the Demon Deacons on Saturday. If Wake's starting QB Riley Skinner doesn't take on a defender without a helmet, the Deacs probably win the game. Still, a win is a win for Miami.





14. Pittsburgh Panthers - The Pitt Panthers move up a few spots after having a bye week. USF's win over West Virginia makes the Panthers' win over the Bulls all the more impressive.






15. Utah Utes - Utah struggled offensively against a much improved Wyoming team this week. The Utes were able to pull away late, but the game showed how much the offense has slipped for Utah. That's not a good sign with TCU still on the schedule.





16. Houston Cougars - Houston has the exact opposite problem that Utah has. Their offense is fine, but their defense looked terrible against an average Southern Miss squad. Houston is obviously the best team in C-USA, but their defense will keep them out of any top notch bowl games.




17. Ohio St. Buckeyes - Ohio St. moves up a few spots after destroying New Mexico St. this week. The win might provide the Buckeyes with the confidence they need heading into the showdown against Penn St. next week.





18. Arizona Wildcats - Arizona enjoyed a bye week. Nick Folk is strongly getting consideration for PAC-10 passer of the year.







19. Oklahoma St. Cowboys - The Pokes slide a few spots after shitting all over themselves vs. Texas. So much for OSU showing up in big games. I guess we have to wait another year for that to happen.






20. California Golden Bears - Cal needed a last second field goal to get past Arizona St. on Saturday. Cal is starting to get some of the respect back that they loss with competitive blowouts to Oregon and USC.






21. South Florida Bulls - The Bulls climb back into the top 25 after their Friday night victory over West Virginia. The win takes some of the sting off of their blowout loss to Pitt the week before.






22. Wisconsin Badgers - The Badgers re-appear in the top 25 after shutting out an improved Purdue team. 'Sconsin has beating the teams that they were supposed to. Could you really ask for anything more?






23. Notre Dame Fighting Irish - Believe it or not, but this is the first appearance for the Irish in my top 25 ever! Granted I've only been doing this for two years. The Irish finally break into the top 25 after beating Washington St. in San Antonio. Obviously, that game alone isn't the only reason why the Irish are at number 23. The rest of the schedule, outside of Pitt, seems pretty easy.



24. Virginia Tech Hokies - The Hokies nearly slide out of the top 25 after their loss to North Carolina on Thursday. I still think Frank Beamer's team is a top 25 team, but they are no longer among the nation's elite.






25. West Virginia Mountaineers - West Virginia stays in the top 25 despite losing to South Florida. This is mainly because of the lack of good teams behind them. The Mountaineers get the nod for the 25th spot over Oregon St., Clemson, Boston College and Idaho.

It All Comes Together

Finally the offense decided to show up for a game. After weeks of hitting the snooze button and missing the game, Florida's offense went off against a reeling Georgia defense. The 41-17 win makes the Gators 17-3 in the last two decades of The World's Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party.

The Gators overcame all kinds of motivational ploys from the "Motivational Master" Mark Richt. The Dawgs stormed the field with black domes in the hopes of psyching themselves up. It didn't work. Then, after UGA's first score, Richt had the boys get together and jump around on their sideline. That didn't work either. What did work was Florida's offense and defense.

Tim Tebow looked like his old self in throwing and rushing for two touchdowns each. He broke Herschel Walker's all-time SEC rushing touchdown mark against Walker's old team. Riley Cooper went Cris Carter on Georgia's secondary. His second touchdown catch was a thing of beauty. Jeff Demps and Emmanuel Moody both ran the ball effectively. Even Mike Gillislee broke off a big run before pulling his hammy.

The defense was stellar once again. Linebacker A.J. Jones picked off two Joe Cox passes. The first pick was a tip-drill to himself that might have been the play of the game. Ryan Stamper got himself a tip-drill int late in the game as well. However, it was Brandon Spikes that was able to convert his int into a touchdown. He quietly walked into the endzone after picking off Cox's backup Logan Gray at the 5 yard line.

The only sour point of the game for the Gators were the injuries. As I mention earlier Mike Gillislee pulled his hamstring on a long run late in the game. Chris Rainey was taken off the field after re-injuring his left shoulder. Tim Tebow, Aaron Hernandez and Brandon Spikes were also dinged up during the contest.

Stat time!

Passing

Tim Tebow 15-21 164 yards 2 tds

Rushing

Tim Tebow 18 rushes 85 yards 2 tds
Mike Gillislee 3 rushes 57 yards
Jeff Demps 5 rushes 31 yards
Emmanuel Moody 7 rushes 26 yards


Receiving

Riley Cooper 4 recs 78 yards 2 tds
Aaron Hernandez 3 recs 29 yards
David Nelson 3 recs 26 yards
Deonte Thompson 3 recs 17 yards


Field Goals

Caleb Sturgis 2/2 Long-56

Tackles

Brandon Spikes 10
Ahmad Black 8
Will Hill 6

Sacks


A.J. Jones 1
Carlos Dunlap 1
Jermaine Cunningham 1

Interceptions

A.J. Jones 2
Brandon Spikes 1
Ryan Stamper 1



Player of The Game

Tim Tebow - Quarterback, SEC Rushing TD King

You know that's gotta sting for Georgia fans. Tim Tebow broke Herschel Walker's record against his old team. Not only that, but Tebow did it on a long run. Something that Tebow has been criticized for the lack of. Tebow's passing also greatly improved this game. With the exception of a few screen passes, Tebow placed the ball exactly where it needed to be on each throw. He now joins the long list of Gator quarterbacks to leave Gainesville with a winning record against UGA.

Florida-Georgia Preview

This year's edition of the World's Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party seems to be creeping up a bit quieter than recent years. No this isn't a clash of two of the nation's top 10 teams this season, and no Florida isn't seeking revenge for a showboating ass-whooping from a previous edition of the cocktail party.

All that being said, the Florida-Georgia game is always special, and this installment should be no different. The Gator players and coaches are still hollering about Georgia storming the field in Jacksonville 2 years ago. Personally, I think that's already been avenged with last year's thrashing. I truly believe the Gators are just doing this to rile themselves up. I don't know if that says the Georgia program is so down this year that Florida needs extra motivation to get up for it, or if it says that Florida needs to do something to wake their offense up out of the doldrums.

No matter what the records are of these two teams, or how bad a certain unit is playing, you'll still hear plenty of name calling and jort/red trouser bashing amongst the fans.


5 Keys to the game.


1. Establish a deep threat - Georgia's defense is incredibly horrendous thus far. They have made Ryan Mallett and Jonathan Crompton look like future NFL Hall of Famers. It seems that no matter who Georgia is playing, the opposing team's quarterback is in store for a huge day. That will only be the case this Saturday if the Gators finally decide to throw the ball deep. Something they haven't done since the last play of the first quarter against Kentucky.



2. Protect the ball - Georgia will be feeding off some huge emotion this weekend. Their season will certainly be salvaged in a big way if they were to knock off the Gators somehow. The best way for the Dawgs to accomplish this is to force some turnovers. Giving the ball up is also the best way to give a struggling defense some serious confidence. The ball needs to stay off the turf for the Gators to control this game.


3. Control emotions - Controlling emotions goes a long way in determining if the Gators ca hold on to the ball or not. This is something that I am always worried about heading into a rivalry game. The Gators have been outstanding in these instances during the Urban Meyer regime. If you remember, their only loss to one of Florida's "Big 3" rivals was to UGA.


4.Protect Tebow - This is definitely something that the offensive line has not been doing lately. What would it take for Steve Addazio to shift a tight end over to help protect Tebow's blind side? Hopefully not a loss. That could be on the way if the line continues to struggle.


5. Save your timeouts - If the Gators truly are still pissed at Mark Richt and Co. for that celebration, Meyer should make sure that he has some extra timeouts at the end of the game to "Give Moody more quality carries."


5 Players That Need to Step Up

1. Tim Tebow - Tebow has struggled mightily against Geogria (2007) and looked brilliant against Georgia (2008). I can't remember the last Gator QB to leave Gainesville with a losing record vs. Georgia as a starter. Tebow will be 1-2 if the Gators lose on Saturday.


2. Deonte Thompson - Thompson went M.I.A. again last week. I think he should change his nickname to Nessie. No one can really prove that he exists, but every once in a while he'll pop his head up and cause all kinds of commotion.


3. Emmanuel Moody - Moody is continuing to establish himself as the Gators best runner out of the backfield. Demps will be sore with a sprained neck and Rainey will have to be relieved at some point. I would like to see Moody get some carries out of the I-Formation against the Dawgs' D. It worked the whole 1 time we ran it last week.


4. Brandon Spikes - Spikes set the tone during last season's Georgia game by clobbering Knowshon Moreno as he tried to break through the line. Brandon should be well rested after sitting out last week's game with a sore groin. I feel bad for Richard Samuel.


5. Dustin Doe - Even though Spikes grabbed the highlights last season, perhaps Florida's best linebacker in that Game was Dustin Doe. Doe was all over the place last season in Jacksonville. If he doesn't get arrested by Saturday, he should continue to build on last week's stellar performance. Showboating aside...


Here's some highlights of last year's 49-10 victory.



Here's what they're saying about the game over at Dawgs Sports.

I like the second comment. The only way Georgia can beat us is if the Florida bus driver drives us to the wrong stadium. Good Stuff!

My Prediction

Florida - 27


Georgia - 17

Q&A With Catfish and Cornbread

In honor of the World's Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party, me and the boys from Catfish and Cornbread got together and put together a little Q&A for your enjoyment.

JJ and Bop are both contributors to Catfish and Cornbread which is wholly dedicated to their first passion: University of Georgia Athletics.

I hope you enjoy the interview, and please check out my portion of the interview at their site.

CFB365: A real simple question to start things off. What is up with Georgia's defense this season?

JJ: Its a combination of coaching, attitude, and players - in that order. You really don't have enough space available on this blog to explain all the problems, primarily pertaining to coaching and attitude.

Bop: It is embarrassing and pathetic. We have completely lost our identity and our swagger. The talent is still in town, but the fundamentals and hustle are gone. The players are honestly not getting the coaching they deserve. Blown coverages and missed tackles are a common theme. We gave up 30 points once in the first half of Richt's tenure in Athens (to the BCS Champion LSU team in the SEC title game). Now we give up 30 points a game almost every week.

CFB365: After the Tennessee game, Mark Richt joined the growing ranks of SEC coaches that have had to deal with Lane Kiffin's big 'ol mouth. His statements about Georgia weren't as inflammatory as his remarks about Florida, South Carolina and Alabama, but they were controversial nonetheless. As a Georgia fan, what's your take on Kiffin and the Vols?

JJ: This will be unpopular with most Georgia and Florida fans, but I actually admire what Kiffin is doing. I think most of that lies in the fact that as a Georgia fan, I wish our own head coach was a little more "out there" with the program, especially when UGA doesn't have a product on the field that can speak for itself positively. Tennessee is likely to finish 6-6 at best this season, but they'll be the most publicized 6-6 team in the history of college football, and Kiffin will recruit like a madman because of it. If he doesn't win eventually, he'll be fired regardless of how much he runs his mouth.

Bop: I just refuse to ever have any respect for a coach that recruits and signs a kid that was an accessory to rape. It blows my mind that kid got a scholarship. I'm all for second chances, but not in that situation. T. Kyle King over on Dawgsports.com said it best: Lane Kiffin has a famous father, a hot wife and a career record of 8-18 (.308). He has no quarterback prospects for the forseeable future and he doesn't have the luxtury of playing a Willie Martinez defense more than once a season.

CFB365: Richard Samuel only has 200 more rushing yards than Caleb King on twice as many carries this season, with 80 of those yards coming on one run. Why is Samuel still getting the bulk of the carries over King?

JJ: Two reasons: Samuel had a monster August (albeit working out against the UGA defense), and King spent the majority of the same month in a green jersey and hasn't really gotten healthy since. Most UGA fans really expected Samuel to have a great season, but all he's proven so far is that he still needs alot more experience to be an SEC caliber back. King is probably the most polished ball carrier on the roster, but he's been hobbled by just about every injury imaginable since early in his senior season of high school.

Bop: Honestly, it started out because of a preseason injury to Caleb. Samuel locked the position down by the time the opener came around. Then a broken jaw in the LSU game caused King to miss more time. Caleb came back and scored a couple against Vandy, but no one really knows who will get the most carries in any given game. The true freshman Washan Ealey is as good a guess as anyone.

CFB365: Speaking of the running game, did you honestly think that Georgia would miss Knowshon Moreno this much? I've always been used to the Dawgs reloading at the running back position, but that doesn't seem to be the case this season. Is this more to blame on the backs or the O-line?

JJ: A perfect storm of events. King being hurt, Samuel not living up to expectations, some ridiculously strange substitution patterns by the offensive coaching staff, and an extremely disappointing offensive line, have all played a part. But it is probably the offensive line that has been the biggest issue. Even losing its most talented piece (Trinton Sturdivant) doesn't excuse how poor they've been so far.

Bop: Yeah, Knowshon was just special. OLine was our supposed strength this season, but they have probably been the biggest dissapointment all year (besides the total lack of anything close to competitive defense). I did think we would miss Knowshon more than say Stafford, but I , like you, expected us to reload a bit quicker than has happened. If the line gets back to being a force, I would expect a better performance out of one of our backs than we've seen so far this year. I'm just hoping it happens in Jacksonville or Atlanta.

CFB365:What's your assessment of Joe Cox's play up to this point? What do you want to see him improve on?

JJ: Cox has been about as good as could be expected coming into the year. Most UGA fans would say that they expected him to be a better game-manager (i.e. throw less interceptions), but those same UGA fans probably didn't expect that he'd be throwing the ball as much as he did either. With a decent running game and a half-decent defense, Cox would have been alot more effective. There really isn't much more you can ask of the kid under the circumstances.

Bop: He's an acurate passer who's best part of his game is his deep ball. I think Joe is a good quarterback and a great Dawg, he just probably lacks in overall talent from the quarterbacks we've had since we had to play walk-on Cory Phillips or since the days of Mike Bobo. Really, I'm not sure he is going to improve much more. He's capable of dropping 300 on anyone. Getting the ball to our TE's and throwing as many in the direction of AJ Green is ideal.

CFB365: Tim Tebow will almost certainly break Herschel Walker's SEC TD rushing record within the next few weeks. I won't ask your thoughts on the record, but I would like to know: As a Dawg fan, what is your perception of Tebow? Overhyped? Overrated? Product of the media?

JJ: I think any player that has as much exposure as Tebow does is probably overhyped. I wouldn't call him overrated....during his 3+ seasons in Gainesville, Florida has been the premier national program, and he is the unquestioned leader of the team. In this age of ESPN, the hype is understandable. I just wish one of the esteemed SEC officials would throw a flag on him one time when he puts on his chest pounding, hands in the air show after a first down that he seems to do at least once per game. Let's just say we've seen UGA players call much less attention to themselves this season and receive extremely damaging penalties for it.

Bop: He's overhyped, but so was Georgia great David Pollack. My brother hit the nail on the head during Tebow's heisman year. He said "Florida has their David Pollack, the problem for everyone else is that their Pollack plays quarterback." He's not a product of the media and he's not overrated, in my opinion, because the sumbitch produces. And he wins. Of course if ole lady luck shines on the Red & Black this weekend, his record against Georgia could end up being 1-2.

CFB365:I've frequented a few Georgia message boards recently, and I was surprised to see so many fans putting a little heat to Mark Richt's seat. Is the patience running thin for Richt in Athens?

JJ: I think what you're seeing is the vocal minority. 90% of UGA fans would never even want to think of getting rid of Richt, regardless of what happens the rest of the year. That said, there are quite a few fans that are getting a little anxious to see him make some changes to his staff, some of whom believe it would have been a no-brainer to make those changes before this season. This coming offseason is going to be different than anything Richt has gone through thus far, and how he handles it will determine the rest of his career in Athens.

Bop: Yes it is. His loyalty to assistant coaches has always been admired. It has helped Georgia year in and year out in the recruiting wars. The problem now is that our coaches are getting taken to the woodshed on Saturday afternoons. The Tennessee debacle was probably the nail in the coffin for Defensive Coordinator Willie Martinez. Almost every quarterback we have played has shattered their previous career high in passing yards against us. We made one of the worst quarterbacks in league history (Crompton) look like a frontrunner for the heisman. Either heads will have to roll come winter or Richt's seat will be blazing hot. My God, we lost to Lane Kiffin.

CFB365: One thing Florida and Georgia have in common this season is bad officiating by Marc Curles and his crew. In Florida's case, it helped. In Georgia's case, not so much. As someone who has been on the wrong side of the bad calls, do you think the punishment (suspension until Nov. 14) is good enough for these refs?

JJ: Personally, I think Curles should have been fired and the rest of his crew suspended for the remainder of the season. The personal foul penalty on AJ Green was bad enough, but for the head referee to blow a personal foul penalty the following week in a game that close, just proves that he isn't a quality enough official to be working at the highest level of college football. The questionable interference calls (or non-calls), I can live with. Stuff like that happens in every game. You just cannot throw that flag against the Arkansas D-lineman without knowing absolutely for certain that it was the right call. The fact that other members of his crew didn't try to correct him makes them all culpable.

Bop: I just wish we could find a way to have full time refs. We are the SEC, we should have the best of the best. Problem is, we probably have the worst. And what's worse is it's beginning to look fixed. Not saying it is...it just looks that way. When the head of officials in the SEC is a Tech grad and you add the history with Al Ford (Gator grad) and the Jasper 'fumble' in Atlanta in '99, it's a recipe for doubt and anger. Just know this, after the AJ Green celebration penalty against LSU, if Tebow does anything remotely celabratory after a first down, the boo birds will be out in full force. It won't be directed towards Florida or Tebow, but venom will spew towards the refs from the Georgia faithful after that LSU game.

CFB365: Georgia seems to be the only team in the conference that is willing to travel out of the South to play a non-conference opponent. This is a good bragging point for Georgia fans, but a loss to a team like Oklahoma St. can really cause some damage. In a college football landscape where the SEC is seen as being so dominant that these cross-national road games are nor necessary for a strength of schedule argument, do you feel that Georgia should take it easy in the future?

JJ: I don't think one home and home every 2 years with a out of conference BCS team (other than natural rivals like Georgia Tech for Georgia and FSU for Florida) is too much to ask for any team. That gives you one tough road game every other year. That would give an SEC team 2 tough OOC games and 2 cupcakes.

Bop: Nah, I like it. Actually, I love it. It's good for the Georgia brand and keeps us in the national spotlight when others are playing I-AA's. The Arizona State game last year, the Oklahoma State game this year and in '07, the Boise State game a few years ago were all as good as it got on those Saturday's. We go to Colorado next season and have Oregon and our old rival Clemson back on the slate in the future. I'd love a Michigan or Texas matchup in the future also.

CFB365:I really hate that corny Lou Holtz locker room speech segment that ESPN shoves down our throats every week. So its only right that I ask you to participate in a little role play. Pretend you are Mark Richt. What are you telling your team in the locker room before they head out onto the field?

JJ: I'd tell them that despite everything bad that has happened this year, all the public criticism and ridicule, the Dawgs have a chance to salvage the entire season, maybe even the entire program this weekend. If this UGA team has any heart, any pride in the uniform they are privileged enough to wear, those words should be plenty of motivation.

Bop: I'd tell them that I want to see everyone celebrate after our first score....