Well, week 1 is in the books, and as usual there were some interesting results. More on that later. First, it seems that Oklahoma is intent on driving the final nail in the coffin of the Big-12. I better lay out my re-alignment plan quickly before anything happens. Here’s what could play out. Pitt, Notre Dame, Missouri, Iowa State go to the Big 16; Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Texas, and Texas Tech go to the PAC-16; Texas A&M, Florida State, Miami, and South Florida go to the SEC; and the Big East takes whatever is left out of the ACC to get to 16. Of course, several existing Big Six Conference teams get left behind (Kansas, Kansas State, etc.) and they join Conference USA. Now, this really isn’t likely to happen as 1) there are some other details to work out with other sports, specifically basketball, and 2) the Commissioners of the conferences are greedy, and while it may make sense geographically, do you really think the Big “10” would want Missouri and Iowa State? And as of press time, Iowa State and Baylor are blocking Texas A&M’s move to the SEC, Notre Dame and Arkansas are being courted by the Big 12, and Oklahoma is saying the Red River shootout is in jeopardy if OU and Texas land in separate conferences…
Now here’s the Autumn Wind’s week 1 Top-10 recap:
1. Let me get this out of the way right away. Notre Dame played so bad in the 1st half that God struck the stadium with lightning in an attempt to get them to focus. It didn’t work. Pathetic effort by the Irish on offense and special teams. Even more pathetic was the way Brian Kelly carried himself. Say what you want about Tyrone Willingham and Charlie Weis; but at least they were classy guys on the sidelines. Kelly’s attitude better change or he’ll get run out of South Bend faster than both Ty and Charles. And Crist is benched for this weeks game @ Michigan in favor of Tommy Rees. Is it just me or does the name Tommy Rees sound like a villain from a Karate Kid sequel (the REAL Karate Kid, not that remake crap)?
2. Baylor’s offense was sure fun to watch; especially as they scored as many points and rung up as many yards as a typical TCU defense gives up in about four or five games. But, in fairness to TCU, they did only return 6 total starters, and they aren’t the Horned Frogs that we saw the last four years.
3. As long as Houston (particularly Keenum) stays healthy, they may have an outside chance of pulling a Boise State and running the table. They’re schedule is wickedly easy from here on out, and starting 10-0 shouldn’t be a problem. Their last two against SMU and Tulsa may be a little of a challenge. So how high would a potentially undefeated Houston team rank (especially with a high profile 12th year QB)? I’m thinking they should get the Big East BCS spot…
4. Oregon obviously played really sloppy, but what I took away from this game was how LSU is not only incredibly fast, but incredibly strong. I lost track of how many times in the 2nd half that they would run a simple power I-formation off tackle play and they had such control of the line and linebackers that the fullback was often getting all the way to the corner backs or safeties before finding anyone to block. Oregon was definitely overmatched in this one.
5. We knew coming in that Oklahoma State and Wisconsin would have powerful offenses. Wisconsin’s ability to actually throw the ball for a change, coupled with the always strong ground game is going to be downright scary. But what is also scary is how poor their defenses are. The Cowboys gave up 320 yards and 34 points to Louisiana-Lafayette, and Badgers gave up 300 yards and lost the time of possession battle against lowly UNLV. That will catch up to both of these teams eventually.
6. Thank you, Maryland, for actually making Oregon’s uniforms look “normal.” Seriously, what the hell is that, Maryland?
7. Here’s how good Alabama’s defense is. Against Kent State they gave up 90 total yards and Kent State’s lone scoring drive was 3 yards due to an Alabama turn-over.
8. Boise State will continue to get criticized by the big conferences because of how weak their conference is. Well, why is it that when Boise plays one of the big boys (usually on a neutral field) they win all of the time? Regardless, the criticism is legit that they only play two games a year (the first game and the bowl game). So, even if they do go undefeated this year, I can’t have them in my top-2.
9. While there were a few upsets this weekend, the games left me scratching my head were USC barely beating Minnesota at the Coliseum, Oregon State losing to Sacramento St. at home, Miami(OH) nearly beating Missouri, Richmond beating Duke on the road, and Washington struggling with Eastern Washington at home. It’s going to be a long year for some of these teams.
10. The biggest problem I have with the preseason rankings is that TCU and Auburn were both only ranked because of what they did last year (or the last four years in TCU’s case). Auburn lost 30 scholarship players, and TCU only returned a total of 6 starters. Neither will finish in the Top-25 this year; especially when they both lose this week (TCU @ Air Force and Mississippi @ Auburn).
Now on to the Top-10 in the standings:
Top-10:
#1 Alabama (1-0) – They could probably win most of their games by solely playing field position due to their defense. I see no reason to even attempt a forward pass against Penn State.
#2 Oklahoma (1-0) – As expected, these guys are good.
#3 LSU (1-0) – I truly think Les functions best and gets the most out of his players when there’s chaos and controversy surrounding LSU.
#4 Boise State (1-0) – Even if/when #1-3 lose, I still can’t have you any higher than #4. It’s true; you do win all of your big games; the problem is you only play two big games a year (the first, and the bowl).
#5 Florida State (1-0) – About as smooth of a transition from Bowden Ball to Jimbo Ball as possible. I hope those folks up in Happy Valley have something similar planned.
#6 Virginia Tech (1-0) – No real threats on the schedule except for the ACC Championship game.
#7 Oklahoma State (1-0) – You may have to score 60+ a game in order to win with how bad your defense is.
#8 Nebraska (1-0) – You may have to give up less than 20 a game in order to win with how bad your offense is. Or will be, once you get out of the Sun Belt Conference games.
#9 Texas A&M (1-0) – I think the Aggies struggle with geography. First, you were in the Southwest Athletic Conference, and now you want to be in the Southeast Conference? Make up your mind!
#10 Wisconsin (1-0) – A Badger team with a QB that can throw? This could get fun to watch.
Rising Fast:
Baylor – If you haven’t watched Robert Griffin III play yet, you need to…
Falling Faster:
Notre Dame – Hey Kelly, the sign says “Win like a Champion” but it also means to lose like a champion. Show some class…
Heisman Watch: Andrew Luck, Stanford – Although, Keenum is going to make his Case if he stays healthy, and Houston goes on a run.
BCS Title Game Prediction:
Alabama v. Oklahoma – I want Keith Jackson to come out of retirement and call this one, though instead of Saban and Stoops he’d probably keep saying Bryant and Switzer.
Week 2 Big Games:
Arizona @ Oklahoma State – The Arizona schools try to prove their legit this week against Big12 foes. Once again, Oklahoma State will have no problem scoring, but will have a problem playing defense. Oklahoma State 52 UofSuck 38
Missouri @ Arizona State – Dennis Erickson said three years ago that this would be his best team. ASU has lost 11 in a row to ranked teams. But, Missouri really shouldn’t be ranked. And they won’t be after this one – while ASU will be. Go Sparky! ASU 31 Mizzou 17
Alabama @ Penn State – Penn State really struggled @ Alabama last year. Expect more of the same. I wouldn’t be surprised if Penn State doesn’t cross the 50 in the first half. Alabama 31 Penn State 10
South Carolina @ Georgia – A must win for Georgia. But it will be a win for South Carolina. 27-17 in favor of South Carolina.
Week 2 Game of the Week:
Michigan @ Notre Dame – 17 years ago, I was enjoying some Ted’s hot dogs at Anton’s house when Michigan hit a FG at the end to win 26-24. Tim played “Hail to the Victors” at least 27 times in a row, and I began to appreciate what the Michigan – Notre Dame rivalry was about. Notre Dame is favored; though I don’t know why. And this is the first night game in the storied history of the Big House. If I had to pick (and I do, I’m blogging after all); I think Michigan wins 24-21.
Until next time…
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