Week 6 Review

"Things are never quite as good as they seem, nor are they as bad as they seem, but somewhere in the middle is reality."


My Predictions vs the outcomes:


Penn St 21-17 - Penn St 39-28 (1-0)

Penn St took care of business and revealed the true identity of Northwestern, they're still Northwestern.


Auburn 35-17 - Arkansas 24-7 (1-1)

Alright, I admit, I get a little down on my Hogs sometimes...it's no secret Ark is my team and I shouldn't ever pick scores because I cannot remove emotion. The Hogs looked really good at the line of scrimmage against Auburn, the Hogs had 8 sacks and protected Tyler Wilson very well in the first half. The secondary still gave up big throws, but limited the run after the catch better, they also had 3 interceptions. The running game looked much better and Tyler Wilson came out of the gate throwing it all over the yard with ease. Auburn didn't go quietly, but if Chizik goes 0-8 in the SEC with Ole Miss and Vandy on the schedule, it'll be coach hunting time on the Plains.


Stanford 35-24 - Stanford 54-48 (2-1)

Stanford is going to have a fighting chance to finish second in the North and in the Pac12. In fact, if they just keep winning and let Oregon take care of business, the Cardinal may make a Rose Bowl appearance. That would be huge, the Cardinal would come out of the woodwork and at least get 15,000 people to buy Rose Bowl tickets. Arizona just needs a couple of years to allow Rich Rod to get his players into his system. It's obvious that Arizona is headed in the right direction, but it'll be interesting to see if this team can stay motivated with all the close losses.


Florida 24-13 - Florida 14-6 (3-1)

Florida needs to show me they can give Driskel attainable goals and keep him involved in the game. Driskel almost lost it for the Gators in the first half, and then disappeared in the second half. The defense was spectacular and somehow the Gators won the kicking game, but without that gutsy performance by Gillislee and the resilience of the offensive line to keep working against the best defensive ends in football it might have gotten out of hand in the second half. LSU might bounce back, but they better figure out how to throw the football. Les Miles has proven he can take an excellent quarterback and make him terrible, I'd like to see him give the offense to Mettenburger and allow his very talented QB to figure it out. You'd think they would have worked on that in the first few weeks, instead, Lester made sure the country knew his team could pound the rock. Well, they couldn't pound it against Florida, and with a National Championship in their sights since last January it could start to unravel in Baton Rouge, I'll stand back and watch what happens.


Clemson 38-14 - Clemson 47-31 (4-1)

Clemson won a much closer game than it appears, the ACC is downright awful and Clemson just happens to be the second best of a very bad group of teams. Georgia Tech needs something good to happen very soon, it seems like they just can't get over the hump in games. I smell a coaching change in the near future, maybe not this year, but surely Tech will realize they can be better than this.


TCU 31-10 - Iowa State 37-23 (4-2)

Iowa State, I just don't think Rhoads will be at Iowa State much longer, with big wins like this, it'll be tough to keep him in Ames. The Cyclones ended Oklahoma State's BCS Championship hopes last year, they just brought TCU back down to reality and I wouldn't be surprised if they got to someone else before this season is over. TCU, you haven't even hit the meat of your schedule yet. It's going to be a long season in Fort Worth, much like it's been for Mizzou, new, substantial upgrade in conference, means more losses and compounding losses because you'll need more depth in your new league.


Oklahoma 28-17 - Oklahoma 41-20 (5-2)

Oklahoma needed a big win, and while Texas Tech isn't anywhere close to the top of the BigXII, the Sooners have had a lot of trouble in Lubbock, and needed to go in there and dominate to build some confidence. The Sooners played fairly well in all aspects and are still my favorite to win the league. Texas Tech had a nice run, but just because you can compete in the FCS doesn't mean you have what it takes to beat the Sooners.


Oregon State 28-24 - Oregon State 19-6 (6-2)

That Oregon State defense is proving to be the real deal, I'm curious to see the Beavers against a team in the top half of the league. My guess, the Beavers will still lose a few they're just outmatched in, however, they'll win one they're not suppose to and take care of business in the games they should win. It's going to be a special seaon in Corvallis, and who knows, a couple of opponents have key injuries at the right/wrong time, we might see the Beavers in the Rose Bowl. Washington State, hang in there, Mike Leach will get it going.


South Carolina 17-13 - South Carolina 35-7 (7-2)

The Gamecocks engineered the most impressive win of the week, they dominated in all three phases and just outright embarrassed Richt and the Dawgs. I'm so excited to see this South Carolina team go to Baton Rouge and then to Gainesville, if they win those two you have to start thinking National Championship possibilities in Columbia this year.


Texas 52-42 - West Virginia 48-45 (7-3)

West Virginia really impressed me last night. I should give myself points for calling the shootout, but I can't imagine anyone outside the SEC and possibly Florida State slowing down this West Virginia offense. Geno Smith comes to play every single game, so do his receivers, but the guy I was most impressed with was Andrew Buie. What a performance from the Sophomore, 207 on 31 carries, what a workhorse. Had Texas been able to contain Buie on the ground, their secondary was playing well enough to get the stops needed to pull out a win, but Buie was having none of it. The DE's couldn't get too far up the field and gave Geno more time to throw on 1st and 2nd down, and occasionally when the Mountaineers would be in third and medium and those DE's would fire off the ball and be 4 yards up the field with Buie going the other direction with blockers in front. Dana was masterful in the playcalling and West Virginia beat Texas in Austin at Texas' game. Welcome to the BigXII West Virginia, you just beat the second most formidable program in your new league in their building, that's cause for celebration. Don't celebrate too long, the BigXII is full of teams that can sneak up on you. Texas, how in the world did you lose that game? You should be ashamed of yourselves, it was pitiful watching poor David Ash do everything he could and the coaching staff screw it up for him. You have to wonder how your quarterback goes 22/29 for 269 yards with no interceptions, your tailbacks get 31 carries for 132 yards and 4 touchdowns, and you only punt the ball one time the whole game, and lose. Texas baffles me and I'm almost done believing in you. You have one more chance to earn all the hype I've been giving the Longhorns this year, it'll be in Dallas next Saturday against Oklahoma, win that one and you're back on track for the kind of year this team is capable of having, lose that one and get ready to unravel and be looking for a new coach at seasons end.


Missouri 28-14 - Vanderbilt 19-15 (7-4)

Vanderbilt is so much better than their record indicates and I'm so happy for Franklin and Vandy that they got this win. It signifies so many things, first of which is that Vandy would finish much higher in every other league. Second would have to be the fact that when you sign up to play football at Vanderbilt, you know what that means, it means a great education and probably a lot of losing. Anytime kids that choose education over football success get a win, it warms my heart. Missouri, I can't really say I know what happened in this one, it wasn't in my rotation of games. I can say that Mizzou is finding out just how tough their new league is. With losses to what seems like everyone, it's getting difficult to find a game on Mizzou's SEC slate that they could actually win. Kentucky will be the big one, and I'm sure the Wildcats will be feeling the same pressure, so you better get ready for a cat fight...pun intended.


Florida State 35-10 - NC State 17-16 (7-5)

NC State, kudos to the Wolfpack for sticking this one out, it looked hopeless late and then all of sudden Florida State let down their guard. Are we really surprised? Florida State is notorious for letting their guard down and allowing inferior teams to slip in, gather momentum, and then take over late. It's been a slightly disappointing season in Raleigh with the loss to Tennessee early and then to Miami a week ago. Florida State and the ACC are now on the back of everyone's mind and if any conference doesn't deserve their AQ status, it's the ACC this year. Florida State could refocus and get to that last game with Florida without giving away another one, if that is indeed the case, November 24th is the only big one left for the Noles and their only shot at national relevance again this year.


Ohio State 31-20 - Ohio State 63-38 (8-5)

Ohio State scored more in the first half than I thought they would in the entire game. It makes me wonder what Pelini is doing in Lincoln. Are we practicing defense Bo? I've seen Ohio State struggle to score against Non-AQ teams, against bad Big 10 teams, and the only other time they put 50+ on the board was when Miami of Ohio came to Columbus in week 1. Is that what the feared blackshirts have become, a team that gives up 371 yards on the ground? Ohio State is not the team everyone thinks they are, especially at the quarterback position. I'm not sold on the Buckeyes, especially when their biggest win so far was to a team that got hammered by the sixth best team in the Pac12. The Big 10 is very bad, and while Ohio State is not laying eggs out there, they aren't necessarily convincing me either.


Oregon 52-24 - Oregon 52-21 (9-5)

Oregon came out firing on all cylinders and it wasn't long before Washington realized they didn't have a chance. I'm concerned for Keith Price and the Huskies, they should be better, they should be having a nice season, but it starts up front Steve and until you can start controlling the line of scrimmage, Oregon's going to keep scoring touchdowns, over, and over, and over.




SpecialEdTeams Top 20
1. Alabama - only makes the schedule look easy because they're so good
2. Oregon - didn't show up groggy against Washington, nice performance
3. Florida - very, very impressive against LSU...that D is nasty
4. South Carolina - wow, what a performance against Georgia
5. Kansas State - convincing win and the Wildcats will host WVU on the 20th
6. West Virginia - huge win against Texas, made me a believer in the Mountaineers
7. LSU - if the TIgers can't figure out offense, it could be tough the rest of the way
8. Oregon State - the Beavers have some nice wins, but they'll need more
9. Mississippi State - quietly 5 - 0 and looking good, especially at the QB position
10. Notre Dame - the Irish will have their chance against USC and OU
11. USC - had a decent game against Utah, but they'll need to be better
12. Oklahoma - Landry didn't look so bad, OU might be back
13. Rutgers - if you're not impressed with both sides of the ball for Rutgers, get impressed
14. Georgia - looked pitiful, Richt needs to get 'em motivated
15. Louisville - gets a confusing Pitt team in Pittsburgh, we'll see what they bring
16. Cincinatti - Louisville comes in on the 26th, they shouldn't have trouble with the next 2
17. Texas A&M - LSU comes to College Station on the 20th...and then we'll really know
18. Texas - I thought they were trying to develop the power run game...their D needed it
19. Florida State - just pitiful, same old 'let you down' Seminoles
20. Stanford - and headed to South Bend to take on the overrated Irish


SpecialEdTeams Conference Rankings
1. SEC - is so good right now it's scary
2. Pac-12 - Oregon's carrying the flag, everyone else is worn out after passing the BigXII
3. Big 12 - Texas needed to show there's a gap between BigXII and Big East, they failed
4. Big East - the big 3 look tough, everyone else...blah
5. Big 10 - is there only one team worth anything??? A team that doesn't even count!
6. ACC - it's just so, so, so bad...I'm tired of having to comment on it


SpecialEdTeams Heisman Watch
1. Collin Klein (KSU) - OU in Norman is a bigger win than Texas in Austin
2. Geno Smith (WVU) - is the favorite if you're stat watching and not player watching
3. A.J. McCarron (BAMA) - steady, strong performances every week
4. Kenjon Barner (ORE) - just keeps producing...and I might be the only one noticing
5. Matt Barkley (USC) - slides back into the conversation after a good performance

SpecialEdTeams Doak Walker Watch
1. Kenjon Barner (ORE) - stay healthy, accept the Walker award, it's that simple for Barner
2. Mike Gillislee (FLA) - great performance against a great defense
3. Johnathan Franklin (UCLA) - winning the stat sheet battle
4. Kadeem Carey (ARIZ) - second time on the list, great performance in the loss
5. Marcus Lattimore (SCAR) - and the favorite is back on the list

SpecialEdTeams Biletnikoff Watch
1. Marquise Lee (USC) - kid is a performer, and probably going to win this award
2. Stedman Bailey (WVU) - bigtime performer, 13 TD catches so far...I'm impressed
3. DeAndre Hopkins (CLEM) - now leads the nation in receiving yards
4. Cobi Hamilton (ARK) - needs to show he can create separation even when doubled
5. Terrance Williams (BAY) - 19.6 yards a catch...this kid is dangerous

SpecialEdTeams Mackey Watch
1. Chris Coyle (ASU) - pretty average performance, needs to be better to keep this spot
2. Zach Ertz (STAN) - nice performance against Arizona in a close one
3. Dion Sims (MSU) - needs to be better, almost lost that one to Indiana
4. Levine Toilolo (STAN) - huge game in the win...I'm expecting this name to stick
5. Mychal Rivera (TENN) - has a big one against Miss St coming up