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.