The Conference Debate

As a fan and follower of the Southeastern Conference, I believe I watch the nation's best conference week after week. I've held this belief since my elementary school days, reflecting an obvious point in the debate for college football's best conference: where you live heavily influences your answer.

In college, the guys on my dorm hall were a mix of SEC and Big Ten/11 fans, with Alabama, Auburn, Tennessee, Mississippi State, LSU, Kentucky, Ohio State, Purdue, Michigan, and Indiana represented in some way or another. We gladly agreed that the Pac-10 and Big 12 sucked and little else.

With this year's college football season winding down, I decided to spend Sunday afternoon compiling information about the BCS conferences, as well as the Mountain West Conference since they have three teams ranked in the Top 25, including #4 TCU.

Looking at out-of-conference games, here are the records for the seven conferences, in order by number of wins:

1. SEC: 42-6
2. Big 12: 35-13
3. Big East: 32-8
4. Big Ten: 31-11
5. ACC: 30-18
6. Pac-10: 21-9
7. MWC: 21-15

Since the Pac-10 requires each of its teams to play the other, giving them nine conference games instead of the seven or eight like the other conferences, they only have a total of 30 out of conference games. Also, the Big East only has eight members, limiting them to seven conference games. Here are the ranking of the conferences by winning percentages:

1. SEC: 0.875
2. Big East: 0.800
3. Big Ten: 0.738
4. Big 12: 0.729
5. Pac-10: 0.700
6. ACC: 0.625
7. MWC: 0.583

By these numbers, it appears the SEC is on top, with the Bigs (East, Ten, and 12) following behind. However, having watched a lot of SEC football over the years, I know that they don't always schedule tough games, giving themselves a healthy portion of FCS schools to pad the win columns. Now, they're not the only ones who do this, so I broke down wins and losses against other BCS schools.

1. SEC: 10-4
2. Big East: 8-6
   
3. ACC: 8-9
4. Pac-10: 6-5
5. MWC: 5-9
6. Big 12: 4-7
7. Big Ten: 3-7

Though a 10-4 record is a strong showing, playing only 14 of 48 non-conference games against other BCS conferences is a shame, which propelled me to look at the percentages of games scheduled against other BCS schools.

1. MWC: 38.89%
2. Pac-10: 36.67%
3. ACC: 35.42%
4. Big East: 35.00%
5. SEC: 29.17%
6. Big Ten: 23.81%
   
7. Big 12: 22.92%

Of the BCS conferences, the Pac-10, ACC, and Big East do a better job than the others scheduling games against each other. The SEC could do a much better job, but the Big Ten and Big 12 are just atrocious. Combine these percentages with their non-conference BCS records and it looks like they're the bottomfeeders for the 2009 season.

These percentages, though, do not include games against Notre Dame. Since Notre Dame has the possibility for a BCS tie-in in the BCS contract, I also worked out the percentages if Notre Dame games were included:

1. Pac-10: 50.00%
2. Big East: 40.00%
3. MWC: 38.89%
4. ACC: 37.50%
5. Big Ten: 30.95%
6. SEC: 29.17%
7. Big 12: 22.92%

 With Notre Dame included, the Pac-10 schedules 50% of its non-conference games against legitimate competition (games versus MWC were not included in these percentages). Though I'm not a strong believer that Notre Dame is always legit competition, they do recruit nationally and have a certain rivalry factor with some of the schools it plays. Also, they have a national television contract, meaning they get most everybody's best shot.

As far as scheduling goes, based merely on playing other BCS schools, the Pac-10, Big East, ACC, and MWC are on the right track. I'd love to see more SEC vs Pac-10 games (only three this season), SEC vs Big 12 (only three this season), SEC vs Big East (only two this year), and some regular season SEC vs Big Ten games as well (none this year).

But scheduling doesn't give the full picture, in the same way that non-conference wins or percentage of wins doesn't provide the whole shebang. I looked through the wins and losses against other BCS conferences and found that a lot of those wins were against the lesser competition from those conferences. For example, the SEC has 10 wins against other BCS schools. They've got wins against Georgia Tech and Clemson (the ACC's two division winners) and West Virginia (3rd in the Big East), but that total also includes some mediocre and lowly teams, like Florida State (6-6), Arizona State (4-8), and Louisville (4-8).

So, I looked at wins and losses against the current BCS Top 25 (Week 13, 2009). Here's what was found, by number of wins:

1. ACC: 4-5 (W: Pitt, BYU, Nebraska, Stanford; L: TCU (2), Alabama, Florida, California)
2. SEC: 3-4 (W: Virginia Tech, Georgia Tech, West Virginia; L: Ok St, Georgia Tech (2), Houston)
   
3. Pac-10: 2-4 (W: Utah, Ohio State; L: Boise St, Cincinnati, LSU, Iowa)
   
4. Big East: 1-3 (W: Oregon St; L: Miami, Penn State, Utah)
   
5. Big 12: 0-6 (L: Virginia Tech, Iowa, Houston (2), BYU, Miami)
   
6. Big Ten: 0-4 (L: USC, Oregon, California, Cincinnati)
   
7. MWC: 0-3 (L: Oregon, Texas, Oregon State)

Now, this list has varied week to week (at least in the Top 25) since the BCS rankings came out, meaning that it cannot be the sole determiner of the nation's top conference. It seems odd that no conference has a winning record against the Top 25. It should also be noted that the Big 12 was listed ahead of the Big Ten and MWC even though it has more losses; the fact that they played against more teams in the Top 25 counted more so than those that didn't.

The last measurement that I'll list concerns wins against FCS schools (formerly Division 1-AA). In my assessment, the fewer FCS schools on the schedule, the better. The shame list reads as such:

1. ACC: 12-2
2. SEC: 11-0
3. Big East: 10-0
   
4. Big 12: 9-0
5. Big Ten: 8-0
6. MWC: 6-0
7. Pac-10: 4-0

Thanks to Virginia and Duke, the ACC owns the only blemishes for BCS schools against FCS opponents. Good for the Pac-10 for only scheduling four games against a completely separate division. It seems ridiculous to me that FBS schools are allowed to schedule games against FCS schools. Shame on the ACC, SEC, Big East, Big 12, and Big Ten. Switching half of those games to games against each other would be a great start.

Taking all of this into account, I still think the SEC is this year's top conference. They have some improvements to make as far as their scheduling goes, needing to reduce the number of games against FCS opponents and increasing the number of games against other BCS teams, especially beyond the ACC. However, they keep winning, whether it is against inferior, superior, or equal competition.

This is how I see the conferences stacking up, by strength from top to bottom. It includes information from above, as well as some input from the BCS rankings.

1. SEC
2. Pac-10
3. ACC
4. Big East
5. Big Ten
6. Big 12
7. MWC
   

Top 10, Week 13

1. Florida (12-0) Tebow went out in style on Saturday against the Seminoles. So did the rest of their senior class. I'm sure the game film from Alabama's Auburn game will provide plenty of ideas of how to attack and confuse the defense. 
2. Alabama (12-0) Two straight undefeated regular seasons; a comeback win against their in-state rival; a strong home stretch for their where-did-he-go-in-October quarterback; but coming up short against Florida again would leave the sourest of tastes for them and their fans. 
3. Texas (12-0) McCoy may have all but wrapped up the Heisman trophy this season. Another showing like this against Nebraska should seal it. Funny how a dropped interception in the Texas Tech game last year may have been what kept him from the trophy then.
4. TCU (12-0) There will probably be a lot of red being worn in Ft. Worth this week. If Nebraska can't pull it out against the Horns, the Fiesta Bowl could do college football a great and beautiful favor by matching up the Horned Frogs and Boise State.
5. Boise State (12-0) Good job avoiding possible upsets the past two weeks. With Oklahoma State's loss, a BCS bid should be theirs.
6. Cincinnati (11-0) Their match-up with Pittsburgh becomes even tougher with Pitt's loss to West Virginia. For them to lose two in a row to finish the regular season seems a bit dicey. If they do win, look for the Sugar Bowl to end up with them, primarily because of their poor showing at the Orange Bowl last year.
7. Oregon (9-2) This is the first time the Civil War will be played for the right to go to the Rose Bowl. Playing at home will be the advantage that pushes them over in this game.
8. Ohio State (10-2) They're one defensive stop and one let-down game away from being undefeated and possibly in the championship game, where they'd once again get crushed by an SEC team again.
9. Iowa (10-2) The best Gameday sign I saw all year was at Penn State when the Hawkeyes came to play. A PSU fan held up a sign that read "Ricky Stanzi listens to Hannah Montana." Not sure why it made me fall off my couch laughing, but it did. If Stanzi doesn't get hurt in the Northwestern game, they're ranked much higher.
10. BYU (10-2) Only losses were to the #4 team and a home blow out by Florida State, which remains inexplicable. Nevertheless, if OSU and Iowa can be in the Top 10 with losses to Purdue and Northwestern, respectively, then BYU can finish the list this week.
    

Top 10, Week 11

1. Florida (10-0) Just keep winning. Don't do it please anyone else. Good win against tough competition on the road, though South Carolina may have shown some small holes in the defense.
   
2. Texas (10-0) McCoy and Shipley could start a boy band they've got so much rhythm right now. Ok, that's a bit much, but I'm sure the coeds (and cougars) in Austin would love to see them in that garb. As for football, Texas is hitting the home stretch with great stride.
   
3. Alabama (10-0) Played great in what many thought would be a trap game. The offense hit some big plays and the defense held another back under 100 yard rushing, with the secondary providing some timely interceptions and pass break-ups.
   
4. TCU (10-0) I haven't written a lot about this team, but have kept them at this spot for four weeks straight now. They made quite a statement last night with a big win over what's become a quick rival in Utah. The Big 12 would do itself a great favor by finding a spot for them in its conference.
   
5. Cincinnati (10-0) Beat a pretty good West Virginia team on Friday night. They have Illinois at home and then Pittsburgh on the road, a de facto Big East championship game.
   
6. Boise State (10-0) They're actually not number one in their league; Nevada has one more conference win then Boise, keeping them atop the standings. That gets settled on the field in a couple of weeks, but not before a trip to Utah State this Friday night.
   
7. Georgia Tech (10-1) The ACC needs them to win the conference championship game. It also needs them to take care of business against Georgia this week. Losing to a struggling SEC team would not help this conference's image right now.
   
8. LSU (8-2) Closer than expected game against Louisiana Tech, but good for them to schedule an in-state game like this (hint, hint, Alabama and Auburn, who should be scheduling UAB and Troy). With Ole Miss and Arkansas left on their schedule, there's no guarantee that they've got 3rd-best in the SEC sown up yet.
   
9. Ohio State (9-2) An overtime win at home against a team without their starting QB, who's been their caped-crusader in games like yesterday's. I don't think their trip to Pasadena is going to go very well. But I'm sure they'd clobber Pittsburgh.
   
10. Pittsburgh (9-1) Again, a weak, weak schedule. Holding off Notre Dame like they did is commendable, but the Irish haven't shown to be great. Fortunately, they get a chance to settle it on the field against Cinci in a couple of weeks. 

Apologies to:
Oregon: If I can't put Stanford up here, I can't find a place for Ducks either.
Oklahoma State: That loss to Houston has been very difficult to overcome, especially after their game on Saturday. Maybe next week.

Week 11 Thoughts

People keep talking about no one wanting to win the Heisman; apparently, no team wants to a non-BCS bowl game. Looking beyond the top eight teams in these rankings, things are fishy at best. Numbers 10, 14, 15, 16, and 17 all lost; the teams ranked between and below them have all hit some type of snag as well. It makes for a frustrating attempt at a top 15 or 25, thus re-emphasizing to me why I'm keeping a top 10 list.

Some quick bites:

• Gary Danielson said something very intriguing with five or so minutes left in the fourth quarter of the Florida-South Carolina game. He said that if there was a playoff system in place, Tebow wouldn't have been on the field as the Gators ran the clock out and may not have even played much of the second half, in order to rest him for the SEC Championship Game and the following playoff run. As much as I'd like to, it's hard to disagree with him on that point.
  
• Is there a firepetecarroll.com site up yet? I mean, the guy's lost to Stanford at home their past two trips and he can't win an eighth consecutive Pac 10 title? Sounds like wheels falling off the program to me.
  
• Though I didn't watch the game, the break-ins and updates last night from the TCU-Utah game told quite a story. Utah's coach was quoted as saying that the Horned Frogs were the best team he's faced in his five years as a head coach. Any way to leapfrog TCU into the Big 12 Championship Game to face Texas? 
• It was great to see Bama more than just survive a game. They did catch a couple of breaks (an under-thrown pass on the first play of the game, a non-reviewed stepping-out-of-bounds-negating-a-kickoff-return-for-TD call), but created their own as well. Marquis Johnson had a couple of fantastic plays; Mark Barron's deflection in the endzone may have been even better than those; James Carpenter (and the rest of the offensive line) continue to create holes and lay down some great blocks; and how about P.J. Fitzgerald's punting -- he's done quite well.
• Though I'd love for Ingram to become the Tide's first Heisman winner, I agree with Mark about who on Alabama's team deserve the vote: Rolando McClain. If the Heisman is supposed to go to the nation's best football player, Ro is man. Ingram's got great stats and has been the offensive MVP for Alabama. But to say he's their best player or the nation's top player...I'm not comfortable with that. I think Ingram's deserving of many accolades and I'll be more than happy should he get in the top three or five or even win it. But McClain has quarterbacked and led this top ranked defense, playing without his right-hand man (Hightower) for most of the year. 
• GameDay is going to Tuscon for the Oregon-Arizona match-up this Saturday. I guess the SEC and Big 12 got too much exposure last year, as it seemed each Saturday landed the crew at a game in one of those conferences. It's been spread around a lot more this year, though not always at the weekend's top game. But I'm mostly ok with that. Seeing the crowd at TCU yesterday was pretty overwhelming; definitely one of the loudest openings they've had; Fowler even asked if people at home could hear them talking because I don't think they could hear themselves.
• Enough with the black unis, especially if you're playing Alabama. Jerseys may bring an extra shot of excitement and bring in a bit more at the cash register, but they're not going to put you over the hump. 
• I did, however, appreciate what South Carolina did in honoring the Wounded Warrior Project; it was a nice way to change things up, but not in an overwhelming fashion. Their jerseys were the same except for their sleeves were digital camouflage and instead of players' names on the back, they had words like "Honor," "Duty," "Courage," and "Service." 
• The SEC only had three teams in the top 25 as of last week. Who's the fourth-best team in the conference?
• The Big 12 only had two teams in the top 25 as of last week. Who's the third-best team in the conference?
• Any chance that TCU jumps Texas in today's BCS rankings? Wouldn't that be interesting? They were ahead of them in the computers but lost ground in points from the polls. However, after yesterday's game, though they'll likely still remain in fourth in the polls, they could garner more points from the voters, closing the gap and possibly jumping them. Crazy system indeed.
  

Preview: Alabama vs. Mississippi State

Whenever I think about Mississippi State, my thoughts initially go to my friend Dean. Dean and I have known each other since elementary school and he was one of my best friends through high school and college. For reasons I don't remember (and may never have known), he latched on to the Bulldogs (as well as the New York Jets and whatever team Ron Gant was playing for) and they became his team and have been since. He's held season tickets even though he's never lived there; from Facebook, I can tell that he still goes down there about once a season, if not more often. He's a true fan. For the Crimson Tide, playing Mississippi State this weekend is quite similar to how guys on opposing intramural teams would often play him; for Alabama's sake, I hope the result isn't the same.

In college, my group of friends and I called ourselves Tres, taken from the song "Tres Deliquentes" (the song starts at the 26 second mark). We lived on the third floor of our dorm; we participated in what we thought of as delinquent behavior (at the time); we did have some legitimate delinquents among us, though they'll go nameless in this space; and we played all our intramural games with a chip on our collective shoulder, feeling looked down upon like the guys in the song (as best we could interpret). Our dorm wasn't considered cool (though we believe we changed that, at least during our years there) and we took on the identity of always having something to prove.

In our games, we typically felt overlooked and looked down upon, taking no greater joy than beating our opponents badly (when we could) and laughing to ourselves as we exited the field or court. We practiced football in one of our university's parking lots by night, using the lines as yard markers; most of the time it was touch, but some touches may have been closer to tackles. Though Gamma Bob seemed to have our number in our early days, we won more often than not. We played tough, we played smart, and we played hard. In a lot of ways, Dean may have embodied more than any us.

In football, he played on the line. It took almost two seasons for teams to pick up that he was actually playing as a tight end, often releasing automatically at the snap. I played quarterback my junior and senior years and he was my go-to target, seemingly always open or making the first block if I took off running. He probably led our team in receiving touchdowns. Thinking back, it seems like he never dropped a pass. And no one on the opposing team seemed to pick up on it until we were up by three scores.

In basketball, it was much the same way. Dean played the post and had a pretty good shot too. More than anything, he rebounded like a beast. He also made some crucial shots in games that have unfortunately escaped my memory. But we'd get to the end of the game, look at the scorebook and Dean would have led the team in scoring. He was a 12-10 guy that opponents seemingly let run wild. And if Alabama isn't ready, the Bulldogs could do the same.

The Tide needs to recognize that this is going to be just as tough a game as Tennessee and LSU were. State's home schedule has been quite imposing, already having played four teams currently ranked in the top 15 of the BCS (LSU, Georgia Tech, Houston, and Florida), which account for four of their five losses. Questionable calls abound in those games like cowbells in the stands. They play a tough brand of football and would love to make this three out of four years defeating the Tide. The Bulldogs have also had a week off, allowing them a freshness that could possibly tip the game in their favor.

The Bulldogs' spread attack features their running back, Anthony Dixon, the second-leading rusher in the SEC this season. Though a spread offense often opens up a lethal passing attack, along the lines of Texas Tech or Utah, Dan Mullen's version in Starkville takes the inherited parts and juices it up a bit, propelling this already talented back to the front of the pack of SEC rushers. Defensively, they can be opportunistic, as demonstrated in the effort against Florida. Though young, they're giving up less than 150 yards rushing each game; opposing teams average a bit over 200 yards passing, which might help build on what Alabama's passing attack was able to do against LSU.

The LSU game gave the Tide a taste of what it's like to be in a wire-to-wire, back-and-forth game, something the Bulldogs have frequented on their home turf. Though McElroy played much better last Saturday than most of October combined, he has yet to hear a crowd of 53,000 sound like more than 100,000, thanks to an ignored SEC ban on artificial noisemakers, made famous in Will Ferrell's now-signature SNL skit, which, should be noted, had nothing to do with Davis Wade Stadium at Scott Field. (Though, I would like to see said skit on that video board; when I was there last year for the Arkansas/MSU game, I spent more time watching it than the field which was only 15 rows away.) It's going to be a loud Saturday night for McElroy and his composure is going to be tested. The experience from the LSU game could prove quite helpful for him, especially coupled with a returned confidence to hit the deep routs and the return of his tight end, Colin Peek.

I don't think Alabama is going to look past Mississippi State. If the game is close, it's not going to be because the Bulldogs were overlooked; it's going to be because the Bulldogs played well. Saban's team seems to have learned its lesson on how to focus on one game a time, as demonstrated by the last two regular seasons. However, there could be a letdown in intensity that comes from playing in such a hyped-up like LSU. It is a Saturday night ESPN game, which typically involves a lot of action, scoring, and excitement.

However...

As far as I can see, or maybe it should be as much as I hope to see, Alabama's defense should contain Mississippi State's offense, adding Dixon to the group of top SEC performers who've suffered through disappointing games against McClain and company. Mark Ingram should continue going through defenders like McKinley High students went through cupcakes in last night's episode of Glee and look for Julio Jones to have another 100-yard receiving game. State's special teams give up an average of 15 yards per punt return, meaning that Javier Arenas is already lining up down field, ready to take one back; don't be surprised if he does.

If you're looking for a 45-38 shoot-out, turn over to ESPN2 for the Auburn-Georgia game. This one will probably be closer to 24-10.

Top 10, Week 10

I typed this Top 10 late Saturday night, but didn't get around to the comments and formatting until this evening. Enjoy!

1.  Florida (9-0) Though without Brandon Spikes on Saturday, their defense still held strong, albeit against an offense that's averaging seven points per conference game. Still, a win's a win as the top three stay the same.
2. Texas (9-0) Colt McCoy (470 passing yards) and Jordan Shipley (273 receiving yards) probably hadn't run and passed around with this much ease since high school. Good luck trying to match those numbers on a video game.
3. Alabama (9-0) Greg McElroy was happy to see November or the end of October at least. Alabama fans were ecstatic to see a healthy Julio, especially back in the endzone. Possibly overshadowed by those two were Mark Ingram's 144 rushing yards and another dominating performance by the Tide's defense. This was the first game in a month I remember a team throwing to a receiver that Javier Arenas was covering; the incompletion spoke for itself.
4. TCU (9-0) I keep hearing that they're the team no one wants to play right now, that their defense is punishing teams, and that they're looking very strong. We'll see how the lights of Gameday look in Ft. Worth this Saturday.
   
5. Cincinnati (9-0) With Iowa and Oregon already going down in the day, it seemed like Cincinnati was going to be the next victim. Not so fast, said the Bearcats.
   
6. Boise State (9-0) Though the loss at Stanford quiets the "Oregon is a better team now than early in the season" crowd, it still drops Boise's only marquee win another notch.
   
7. Georgia Tech (9-1) Such fun to watch this offense go, even if it's through a bi-polar conference.
   
8. LSU (7-2) If Jefferson doesn't injure his ankle. If Scott doesn't break his collarbone. If the interception that really was an interception got called an interception. Then the game might have been closer than the nine-point difference. But not much. The fourth quarter means something again in Tuscaloosa.
   
9. Iowa (8-1) Tough loss, both on the scoreboard and to the quarterback, Ricky Stanzi. They still had a chance to win, though. Funny how the voters easily forgive a Matt Barkley-less-but-still-talently-loaded USC team at Washington but drop a Ricky Stanzi-less Iowa team like a sack of dirt. Not here.
   
10. Houston (8-1) Chase Keenum is putting up numbers that defy gravity. They danced with the Big 12 and won. They battled the SEC and won. They stumbled in El Paso but only then. Tulsa tossled them a bit, but they eeked it out. Good for them. Props for scheduling and for winning.
    

Keep begging for it:
Pittsburgh: Weak, weak schedule so far. Could push Charlie Weis out of his hot seat on Saturday, though.
Utah: Could spoil things for TCU this weekend.
Oregon: Why they're not ranked ahead of USC confounds me and bothers me.
USC: Why they're not ranked ahead of Ohio State confounds me and bothers me.
Ohio State: Why they're ranked so high after defeating a clearly overrated and overhyped Penn State team just irks me.

Top 10, Week 9

Due to an out-of-town engagement (literally), I was not able to watch college football this weekend. Not that I'm complaining. I've done some catching up the past couple of days on what happened and what didn't happen. A few thoughts before I get to the list:

First, I'll gladly accept congratulations for keeping USC out of the Top 10; I didn't watch the game, but I could still sense the beat down they received.

Next, there needs to be a rule change about the punishment a player receives for being thrown out of a game. Currently, that standard is set at half of the following game; this may have played into the decision making regarding the suspension of Brandon Spikes. If so, considering he wasn't even flagged for the play on the field, an argument can be made that the suspension is just; however, the replay of what happened calls out for at least a full game. Shame on Urban Meyer. Shame on Mike Slive for supporting the decision on behalf of the SEC. Shame on Tim Tebow for arguing that Georgia was doing just as much and that's how it goes; I expected Tebow to be better than that. Finally, Shame on Spikes for reacting like he did; apparently, his eye-gouging was due to a cheap shot he or  teammate received on an earlier play.

Lastly, I'm pulling for BCS destruction (as long as Alabama still finishes on top). I'd love to see Texas,  TCU, Iowa, Boise State, Cincinnati, and Penn State continue to win out; I'd like to see Florida win all their games up to the SEC Championship Game; I'd like to see Oregon take the Pac 10; I'd like to see Notre Dame win out, move up to the top 14 of the BCS and then get left out because there would be 13 better teams in front of them. Not that a scenario like that would change anything or even happen; if it did occur, maybe it would give us a nice slew of bowl games:

Sugar Bowl: Florida vs Penn State
Tostitos Bowl: TCU vs Boise State
Orange Bowl: Cincinnati vs Georgia Tech
Rose Bowl: Iowa vs Oregon
BCS Championship: Alabama vs Texas

If those bowl match-ups occurred, there would be a guarantee of three undefeated teams, with a possibility of four. I know, I know -- the tie-ins would fall in place like that...that would be much too fun and competitive, which is not what the BCS is about.

On to the rankings.

1. Florida (8-0) Finally a signature win for the season, albeit against a horrendous Georgia team, who for some reason can't seem to understand that changing uniforms does not transform talent.
2. Texas (8-0) Two strong performances in a row, on the road at that. They seem to be gearing up right in time for the stretch run.
3. Alabama (8-0) The Tide have had an extra week to rest and prepare for a big showdown with the Bengal Tigers from the Bayou. If the past two years are any indication, this game will be fought and won deep into the fourth quarter. Look for Greg McElroy to return to form and for Julio Jones to catch at least two touchdown passes.
4. TCU (8-0) I'm going to stick with the same rankings 4-7 that appeared in the last poll. I really should have more to say about the Horned Frogs at #4 than this, but I don't. Deal.
   
5. Iowa (9-0) Cardiac Kids. Houdinis. Whatever you choose to call these escape artists, call them good. To keep pulling bunnies out of your hat (and butt) is impressive. 
6. Cincinnati (8-0) One more time in case you haven't read it: they lost 10 defensive starters from last year and they've been playing without their starting quarterback for a few weeks. Quite impressive.
   
7. Boise State (8-0) Poor Boise. TCU scores a big win on the road to a ranked team later in the season than you; the team you drilled in the season opener defeats the glorious Trojans and builds its own credibility; and you get no love. I blame this on the Pac 10; they should add Boise and Utah to make it the Pac 12, have a conference championship, and join the rest of the gang.
8. Oregon (7-1) Great win over USC. In the driver's seat to the Rose Bowl, with a slight chance to play in the big one if teams start dropping off.
9. LSU (7-1) Tulane was a nice appetizer for what the Tigers hope is a grand feast on Saturday. They've got the talent. They've got the rhythm. They've got The Hat. Should be an enthralling throwdown.
10. Georgia Tech (8-1) The ACC's only hope of respectability for this season. The SEC should bring them back by trading Vandy to the ACC. What a battle that would be: Vandy and Duke for bottom of the barrel bragging rights.