Week 5 Recap and Week 6 Preview

Well, we’re five weeks in and still not much separation at the top. Undefeated Wisconsin, Clemson, and Alabama all had big wins against ranked teams, and continue to top the polls as well as their conferences. LSU continues to take care of business, and holds on to the top spot in the AP. I took a step back in the picks this weekend as I was only 2-2 in big games (15-5 overall), but I’m confident in this week’s picks. All of them!

Now here’s the Autumn Wind’s week 5 Top-10 recap:

1. As long as Trent Richardson keeps rushing for more yards than Alabama gets through the air, the Tide will continue to roll.

2. If you only saw the UCLA/Stanford score, you thought that Stanford won big; but since you didn’t watch the game (and most didn’t because of the late West Coast start time), note that it was 24-13 deep into the third, and Stanford pretty much ran in up by scoring two TDs in the 4^th, including one through the air with less than 2 minutes to go when they could have just run out the clock. Regardless, Luck is in total command of the offense, and Stanford has the nation’s longest winning streak.

3. Dear Nebraska, welcome to the Big 10. Wow, that recent Sports Illustrated article was right on: Wisconsin is the new Nebraska (well, minus all of the National Championships and Tom Osborne, of course).

4. Ye Ole Ball Coach got dominated by an Auburn team that lost 30 scholarship players from a year ago. Okay, maybe it wasn’t a total domination, but it was a South Carolina loss. Auburn has surprised me so far this year.

5. I haven’t seen Va. Tech play that poorly in Blacksburg in a long time. I’m not quite sure what to make out of the ACC at this point as, quite frankly, I don’t follow them much. Is Clemson that good, or is Va. Tech that bad?

6. In a battle of tough-loss-the-week-before game, Texas A&M once again jumped out to a huge halftime lead; losing it in the 2^nd half, this time to Arkansas. Arkansas and Oregon both have chances to get back into things if they can keep winning, as their only loses are to the #1 and #2 teams in the country.

7. TCU’s 22 game home winning streak is done. Overall, the Frogs haven’t looked good this year, but they did go down fighting by scoring 23 in the 4^th to make it a game. My question is what happened to the usual fast-starting TCU team? Oh yeah, Dalton, and much of the defense, is gone.

8. Griffin III threw for 346 and 5 TDs but the 4^th quarter interception @ Kansas State cost Baylor the game and Griffin’s shot at the Heisman. Still, Baylor is fun to watch, and somehow K. State is undefeated?

9. Maybe Notre Dame finally gets it. See what happens when you don’t turn the ball over? 550+ yards of offense, another solid defensive effort, and a blow out win. I’ll see you this weekend in South Bend!

10. Arizona State destroyed Oregon State after starting off extremely bad, but once again too many mistakes. Falling behind 13-0 at home to a winless team whilst committing three turnovers on your first three possessions is not going to get it done. Especially with back to back road games @ Utah and @ Oregon. I’ll take a split here.

Now on to the Top-10 in the standings:

Top-10:

#1 Alabama (5-0) – I don’t see a loss on your schedule (well, except for November 12^th at Mississippi State.

#2 LSU (5-0) – Time to beat up on the Gators.

#3 Oklahoma (4-0) – I asked you to score 65 against Ball State; 62 was close enough…

#4 Stanford (4-0) – Solid team all around; no weaknesses, except for injuries.

#5 Boise State (4-0) – Meh, if you’re gonna keep winning, at least cover, mmmkay?

#6 Oklahoma State (4-0) – Can you smell that Big 12 title?

#7 Wisconsin (5-0) – That entire offensive line should be drafted by the Vikings next year.

#8 Clemson (5-0) – Where did this come from?

#9 Oregon (3-1) – Time to get fat on PAC-12 opponents.

#10 Arkansas (4-1) – Should you run the table, where do you fit? Maybe #4?

Rising Fast:

Clemson – Sorry, I though the ACC was a two horse race. Well, I guess it is; just with Clemson and Georgia Tech (not Va. Tech and Florida State)

Falling Faster:

Texas A&M – Two weeks in row now you’ve choked away huge half-time leads against great teams. What could’a been…

Heisman Watch:

Andrew Luck, Stanford – How easy does Stanford’s Offensive Coordinator have it? Luck calls most of the plays, and manages the game extremely well.

BCS Title Game Prediction:

Alabama v. Oklahoma – I need to see Oklahoma play some more, but they’re about to get bounced from my title prediction in favor of Stanford.

Week 6 Big Games:

Florida @ LSU – If Florida got whipped that bad at home against Alabama, how bad will this one be @ LSU? Especially with an injured quarterback. LSU 38 Florida 10

Auburn @ Arkansas – Auburn has been a surprise after how much talent they lost. Arkansas is one of those perpetual “we’re one year away from winning the SEC” teams. Arkansas is better, and at home. Arkansas 38 Auburn 35

Ohio State @ Nebraska – A must win for the Huskers if they hope to contend in the Big 10 in their first year. Can the Blackshirts finally show up for a game? Can Martinez actually make some plays? Yes, and yes. Nebraska 45 Ohio State 20

Week 6 Game of the Week:

Oklahoma v. Texas – I’ll be honest, while I was expecting Texas to be undefeated for this game, I didn’t think they would be this impressive. Oklahoma’s favored, but Texas keeps it close. Oklahoma 37 Texas 34

Until next time…