College Football Weeks 10 & 11

We had some issues downloading the blog for last week, so I will combine both in one post here. The week really got kicked off in Louisville for the first of a few Big East showdowns to come in the next couple weeks. The 'Ville was very impressive on both sides of the ball, and really took control of the game when the 'Neers made a couple mistakes in a row early in the third. Slaton had a few fumbles, and also injured his arm. Once he was taken out of the game, the steam seemed to come out of WVU, and they could not stop Louisville at all. I think most of us knew the WVU defense was not solid, but they really got exposed in this game. Louisville travels to Rutgers this Thursday in another BCS title elimination game. Lets now move to the Big Ten where OSU and UM had some struggles, but ultimately came out on top, while both did not cover. The Buckeyes traveled to Champaign to face a feisty Illini team that has actually been in every Big Ten game this year mainly due to Freshman QB Juice Williams. Juice is a very good and exciting player, but takes some chances because of his youth that put their defense in vulnerable spots occassionally. The Bucks jumped out to a 17-0 lead, and held on 17-10. Eventhough the score indicates a 7 pt win, the game was never really in doubt as the Illini scored their only TD with under 2 minutes left. After they had a chance at recovering the onsides kick, the Bucks ran out the clock. One more game @ Northwestern before the big showdown the entire college football world has been waiting for since the second weekend in September. The Wolverines also struggled to a 34-26 win in a game I didnt see much of since it was on ESPNU. The Wolverines outgained the Cardinal by a ton, but made some mistakes that kept Ball St in the game. Give Ball credit as a 34 pt underdog and a chance to tie the game in the final moments, but it wasnt meant to be. Michigan travels to Indiana next week in what could be a tough game for a half or so. Next up, the SEC. Florida traveled to Vandy to face a better than expected Commodore team. I did not catch any of this game, but the Gators defense got the job done in the end, and locked up a spot in the SEC Title game. They will most likely face Arkansas in that could be for a spot in the BCS Title game. Arkansas rolled into Columbia and beat Spurrier's gamecocks 26-20. The Razors have to get their QB issues resolved, but lets look at the good...McFadden. Wow, this guy is one of the top 3 RBs in college football in my opinion. He has a very impressive combo of speed and strength, and the Razor offense is heavily reliant on him. They still have some battles coming up, so lets not reserve their spot in the SEC Title game until we watch the last couple games unfold. But no matter what happens, its been a good year in Fayetteville, and only projects to be better as Mustain gets some experience. Auburn stepped out of conference and beat Arkansas St. 27-0 (L on line). Did not see much of this one, but lets watch the last few weeks and see if the Tigers can get a rematch with Florida. Texas at home took care of the Cowboys from Oklahoma St. Colt McCoy continues to impress, and their defense was very stifling. They appear to be the best one loss team in my opinion with their only loss coming to the Buckeyes. I have jumped Cal up in my rankings to #6. These guys lost their opener in Knoxville, and have gone undefeated since. Opening up on the road against the Vols is no easy task. The Bears continued rolling Sat night with a 38-24 W (L on line) vs UCLA. This game was not on here, but they were in control most of the game. It seems the Pac 10 and Rose Bowl bid is going to come down to the Bears/Trojans matchup on Nov. 18. Game is in LA, so my early instincts tell me take the Trojans, but more to come on this next week. USC blew out Stanford on Sat night 42-0 on the road. The Cardinal is just terrible, and it was a good rebound for USC. And rounding out my Top 10 are the Fighting Irish. Notre Dame rolled the Tar Heels by 19 (L on line). As I have been saying for weeks, nobody will threaten the Irish until their visit to USC. They have locked up a BCS bid at this point. Below are my rankings:

#1 Ohio State 10-0
#2 Michigan 10-0
#3 Louisville 9-0
#4 Texas 9-1
#5 Florida 8-1
#6 California 8-1
#7 Arkansas 8-1
#8 Auburn 8-1
#9 USC 7-1
#10 Notre Dame 8-1

Next 5 in alphabetical order: LSU 7-2, Rutgers 8-0, Wake Forest 8-1, West Virginia 7-1, Wisconsin 9-1

Top 5 one loss teams ranked in order of who would win if games played on neutral field:

#1 Florida
#2 Auburn
#3 Texas
#4 California
#5 Notre Dame

My 10 BCS Teams including National Title game teams:

Ohio St, Michigan, Florida, Auburn, USC, Notre Dame, Texas, Georgia Tech, Louisville, Boise St

Matchups I see:

National Title: Michigan v Florida
Rose: USC v Ohio St
Orange: Georgia Tech v Louisville
Sugar: Auburn v Notre Dame
Fiesta: Texas v Boise St