At this point in the season, things are what they seem. West Virginia is incapable of slowing down a junior high school offense, Alabama is on another planet and we're not quite sure who's up there with them, and Collin Klein is the best player in the country up to this point. The best part about this college season is that the back half the schedule should be even better than the front half.
Kansas State was not graded last week because I thought the OU game was a fluke and that OU really beat themselves. I wanted to see if the Wildcat defense was capable of slowing down a high powered offense, and the Wildcats proved they can in Morgantown last night. Snyder and Co dominated the game from start to finish and really embarrassed Geno and Dana's offense all night. It was without a doubt the loudest answer to a question of the season thus far. Kansas State gets an A+ for the first half of the season and after that performance last night, Kansas State looks like the team with the easiest road into the BCS National Championship Game. West Virginia, that was pathetic, I'm done talking about you, done talking about Dana as a coaching candidate at Alabama, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, or Texas if those jobs were to come available, I'm done believing in the Mountaineers, you should be ashamed of yourselves after what happened last night.
Oklahoma, might be back in the mix for a National Championship, I know a few things to be true about the Sooners. If they show up, there are few teams in the country that can match the Sooner's best, the new receivers are really starting to settle in, and they will dismantle Notre Dame next saturday. It should be a very satisfying season in Norman, I'm sticking with my 11-1 prediction which should be good enough for a BCS Bowl, possibly a BCS National Championship Game invitation.
Florida, is much better than I thought at the beginning of the season. The Gators are just nasty on the defensive side and developing nicely on offense. If the Gators can get past Georgia next week, it sets up nicely for a Florida vs Alabama SEC Championship Game. If the Gators do make it there, I'd like to point out how much time both Bray and Shaw had when Florida didn't bring pressure from the linebackers or secondary. That, plus their very average passing game, could be the demise of the Gators if/when they face Alabama. South Carolina, that stretch was very difficult, but it should get easier, at least for a little while. The Gamecocks are built to get after the passer and create tight windows using only three, four, or five to pressure the quarterback. Clowney is a man's man, and without question the best defensive player in the country this year. If you haven't seen South Carolina, I'd highly recommend watching #7 on their defense, plays defensive end, is the best defender in the country in my opinion. It wasn't enough yesterday to get the win, but South Carolina has the meat of their schedule behind them, so the Gamecocks could get a lot of confidence down the stretch and are still a potential candidate for a BCS Bowl at this point.
Alabama is on another planet, they've yet to even be contested, it's beginning to bother me actually. The front half of Bama's schedule had a lot of promise, Michigan, Arkansas, and Missouri, but those ended up being duds. We make excuses for those that can't compete, like, "Michigan's not really that bad, Saban just really knows how to coach his boys up and get them ready in week 1, if that game were played in week 3 or 4, it would have been closer," or, "Arkansas was without Tyler Wilson and in a funk, it would have been closer if the Hogs were 100%," or, "Missouri's just struggling in the new league, give them a year or two and they'll make it a good game." The truth is, Alabama is just on another planet, and there might be some teams up there with them, but if you're not up there, good luck playing football against them. Tennessee, it's been a really long season so far, but with the toughest SEC schedule this year, drawing two top 10 teams from the West, Florida playing the way they are, Georgia game being at Georgia, and South Carolina being at South Carolina, this season was a complete scheduling nightmare. Hang in there though, after what's probably going to be an 0-5 start in the SEC could finish with three wins, four if you count the non-conference contest with Troy. The Volunteers should finish the season 4-0 and be bowling, it'll give the new coach all those bowl practices, so that will be good.
Notre Dame, it's beginning to look a lot like you're just pretending, your most impressive win is not all that impressive. That could all change this coming week in Norman, my guess is the Sooner's offense will be the first to crack the facade of that Irish D, but Stoops troops have struggled with physical football teams and Notre Dame sure looks to fit that mold. Oklahoma is just too athletic, too fast, and too confident right now to go down to this much overrated Irish team. BYU, great effort, but in the future, let your QB fling it down the field when you're down 3 with only a few seconds left.
Oregon is one of those teams that could be on another planet with Alabama, they've looked incredible thus far and do most of their damage running the ball. The biggest difference to this Oregon team is the defense and they're playing it very well in Eugene right now. I want to see an Alabama vs Oregon game very badly, I think the Tide's physicality is really difficult for anyone outside the SEC to match and then you start listing off the attributes of both teams and realize it might be a pretty good game. Arizona State lost to what might be the second worst team in the SEC...right now I'm calling Auburn the worst, but Missouri and Kentucky will get a chance to battle it out for worst in the East. When you lose to Missouri and then manage to go 3-1 in the Pac12, it makes me think the Pac12 is weaker than currently perceived.
Texas Tech, is taking care of business this year. What an impressive year so far for the Red Raiders, at this rate you might find yourselves in the top half of the conference and playing in a New Years Day bowl. TCU, welcome to your new league, when every week the opposing team has similar talent, it forces you to show up every week with the same intensity. It might be a few years before the Horned Frogs really have the depth to win at a high level in the Big12.
SpecialEdTeams Top 20
1. Florida - with the wins the Gators have put together, they deserve this
2. Kansas State - again, very impressive wins thus far
3. Alabama - the Tide's schedule will heat up down the stretch, it should be fun
4. Oregon - the Ducks are winning and making it look easy, Kiffin, you ready?
5. LSU - is obviously one of the elite teams in the country, the Tigers can really play
6. Notre Dame - will probably be moving down after this week
7. Oregon State - can play some defense...offense is mehh, but defense is wow
8. Oklahoma - if the Sooners are back like I think they are, lookout Notre Dame
9. Mississippi State - the Bulldogs needed this start, the rest of the schedule is brutal
10. USC - the Trojans are just waiting for the showdown with the Ducks
11. Rutgers - deserves to be higher, but they'll get their chance
12. Texas Tech - the Red Raiders just continue to impress, I'm impressed
13. South Carolina - needed to show up against Florida, they failed
14. Lousiville - cutting it close this week, maybe they'll get back on track next week
15. Georgia - the Dawgs might be overrated here, but I'm calling the Kentucky game a fluke
16. Florida State - the Noles tried to lose another to the U, rivalry games are always tough
17. Ohio - the fighting Solich's just keep winning and winning
18. Texas A&M - the Aggies can really play, they've hung in with the SEC elite's two times now
19. Stanford - the Cardinal didn't even let the Big Game get close
20. Wisconsin - look who's running the ball again and looking like they can play a little football
SpecialEdTeams Conference Rankings
1. SEC - no doubt about it today
2. Pac12 - and if Oregon St keeps winning, lookout SEC
3. Big12 - Oklahoma needs to handle Notre Dame to make a run at the Pac12
4. Big East - and the games are actually pretty entertaining to watch
5. ACC - Clemson and Florida St need to keep winning to keep this spot
6. Big10 - blah
SpecialEdTeams Heisman Watch
1. Collin Klein (KSU) - kid is way out in front in my book, and pulling away
2. A.J. McCarron (BAMA) - is so efficient, had a great game this weekend
3. Kenjon Barner (ORE) - the cornerstone of the Oregon offense, start talking about him
4. Matt Barkley (USC) - had a big game against a terrible D, but he needed some confidence
5. Mike Gillislee (FLA) - is the man in Gainesville, the MVP of the Florida offense
SpecialEdTeams Walker Watch
1. Kenjon Barner (ORE) - keep running, stay healthy, accept the award
2. Mike Gillislee (FLA)- is the only other running back even close right here
3. Montee Ball (WIS)- the last three games have been monsters, he's back in it
4. Stepfan Taylor (STAN) - had a monster game on Saturday
5. Ka'Deem Carey (ZONA) - just another 172 yards on the ground this week
SpecialEdTeams Biletnikoff Watch
1. Terrance Williams (BAY) - 21 yds a catch, 9 TDs, running away with yards
2. Marquise Lee (USC) - and gaining ground, Sat was his 4th 100+ yd receiving game
3. DeAndre Hopkins (CLEM) - not his best effort on Sat against Va Tech
4. Cobi Hamilton (ARK) - had the week off
5. Stedman Bailey (WVU) - one more bad week and he'll be off the list
SpecialEdTeams Mackey Watch
1. Zach Ertz (STAN) - great game against Cal, 134 yds and a TD
2. Eric Ebron (UNC) - needed more against Duke, tough loss
3. Austin Seferian-Jenkins (WASH) - Huskies were humbled, but Austin came to play
4. Chris Coyle (ASU) - decent game against Oregon, Ducks were just way too much
5. Jace Amaro (TTU) - was out on Sat, Red Raiders could have used him
