I was scratching my head all year trying to figure out how the SEC wouldn’t have a team in the Championship Game, as I long assumed that the winner of the SEC Championship Game would for sure be in the Top-2. That’s not the case anymore. The winner of a likely Georgia/’Bama rematch isn’t going to automatically vault into #2 without help. That help is looking to be in the form of USC beating Notre Dame (likely); Oregon losing to Stanford, Oregon State, or the likely rematch with USC (not likely), or Kansas State losing at home to Texas (unpossible). It’s safe to say that K. State is playing for the championship. Of course, it’s never safe to say anything with football still left to be played!
Here’s the Autumn Wind’s week 11 Top-10 recap:
1. Despite being 4-5 and having a disappointing season, Virginia Tech still showed why it’s so difficult to go into Blacksburg on a Thursday night and come away with a win. Florida State was held to -15 yards rushing, but did get seven on a fourth and one play on the last minute game winning drive. Huge win for the Seminoles.
2. TCU had won 27 straight when holding teams to 28 or under. Streak snapped via Collin Klein and that underrated K. State defense. The stars are aligning in favor of K. State. I think Herbstreit said it best: “Can you imagine a 12-0 Notre Dame team not being in the Top-2?” That’s likely to happen without an Oregon or K State loss. And of course that assumes a Notre Dame win @ USC which I’m already mentally prepared for that not to happen.
3. Notre Dame’s defense continues to shine, holding yet another team without a TD, and is now the number one scoring defense in the country. I just hope their offense clicks against USC, or the Irish faithful will be haunted by that one loss for years to come.
4. Did Florida really need 14 points in the last two minutes at the Swamp to beat Louisiana-Lafayette, a middle of the pack Sun Belt team? Good luck @ Florida State in a couple weeks.
5. Georgia, LSU, and South Carolina continue to roll, and it’s fascinating that with five teams in the Top-10, the SEC may not be represented in the BCS Championship Game. I think you can clearly see why the SEC was one of the biggest proponents of a playoff system. No offense to my beloved Irish, but do you really think Notre Dame has a chance in a playoff against the likes of Alabama, LSU, Georgia, South Carolina, or Texas A&M?
6. Case in point about a team being undefeated not meaning much: Louisville. Now Rutgers controls its own destiny in the “I can’t believe we still get an automatic bid” conference that used to be known as the Big East.
7. In this week’s “Don’t forget about us,” Clemson is nearly back in the Top-10, and have reeled off six straight wins following the loss to Florida State. Their transformation can be complete with the upset of South Carolina in a couple weeks.
8. Someone needs to tell Northwestern that games are 48 minutes long and not 42 minutes. All three of their losses have come after being ahead with six minutes left.
9. All the talk was the Cal had somehow figured out Oregon and that they were the blueprint to slow down the Ducks. And that was fine and dandy mid-way through the third when Oregon was only up 24-17. But then the Ducks pulled a Marty McFly, dropped it into fourth and said “Let’s see if you bastards can do 90” and racked up five unanswered TDs. I don’t think anyone can slow down the Ducks for four quarters. This isn’t the same Ducks team, or mentality, that Auburn was able to wrangle a couple years ago. You remember Auburn used to be good, right? And not the soon-to-be 0-8 SEC team we see now?
10. They spotted A&M three first quarter TDs, they couldn’t tackle Johnny, they turned it over three times, they had no business winning that game, yet there Alabama was with a 4th and goal to win it. Sure, Alabama lost, sure A&M played near flawless football, but don’t forget how good of team this Alabama team is. And they’re only gonna get better: another top-5 recruiting class and they only use nine scholarship seniors. Oh, and all the talk about A&M and Johnny football? Total yards: A&M 418 Alabama 431.
Now on to the Top-10 in the standings:
Top-10:
#1 Oregon (10-0) – Quack, quack. We’re #1!!! (I think the Autumn Wind poll should be included in the BCS calculation as there’s no reason for Kansas State to be ranked higher than Oregon).
#2 Kansas State (10-0) – Solid lead at #2.
#3 Notre Dame (10-0) – Please find a way to beat that loser Lame Kiffen and those hated USC Trojans. Please. Please. Please!!! Oh yeah, don’t forget about Wake Forest either.
#4 Alabama (9-1) – One time it doesn’t hurt to lose late is when everyone else in your conference has already lost.
#5 Georgia (9-1) – 35-7 against South Carolina, really?
#6 Florida (9-1) – 14-7 win against Missouri, and needing two TDs late to beat LA-Lafayette, really?
#7 Florida State (9-1) – 17-16 against North Carolina State, really?
#8 LSU (8-2) – Six points against Florida, and giving up a game winning drive @ home @ night, really?
#9 South Carolina (8-2) – A 17-13 win against Vandy and only 11 points against Florida, really?
#10 Oklahoma (7-2) – Two chances for signature wins at home and two losses, really? I think I’ve talked myself into the four teams that should be in a playoff this year!
Rising Fast:
Texas A&M – Who would’ve thought that Texas A&M is the likely reason that the SEC National Championship streak is likely coming to an end?
Falling Faster:
Oregon State – If you go on the road and win the turnover battle 4:1, you’re supposed to win. Or at least not lose the “points off turnovers” battle 7:3.
Heisman Watch:
Collin Klein, Kansas State – Johnny Football is the talk of the town, but don’t forget his poor second halves against Florida and LSU. Klein has been solid all year. And I personally like the name Optimus Klein a lot more than Johnny Football.
BCS Title Game Prediction:
Oregon v. Kansas State – Alabama was exposed by both LSU and A&M. Neither of these teams has yet to be exposed. I’d be happy if this is the final match-up, but there’s still a lot of football to play.
Week 12 Big Games:
USC @ UCLA – USC needs a win against cross town rival UCLA to head to the PAC-12 Championship game with an outside shot still at the Rose Bowl. How UCLA is ranked higher than USC is truly a reflection of W/L and nothing to do with how good either team is or is not. Remember last year? USC 50 UCLA 0. USC isn’t peeking ahead to the Notre Dame match-up next week – that usually doesn’t happen with a rivalry game. USC 45 UCLA 13
Week 12 Game of the Week:
Stanford @ Oregon – All eyes will be on Eugene as the rest of the BCS Top-10 basically take the week off (Kansas State @ Baylor, Wake Forest @ Notre Dame, Western Carolina @ Alabama, Georgia Southern @ Georgia, Jacksonville State @ Florida, Ole Miss @ LSU, Sam Houston State @ Texas A&M, Wofford @ South Carolina, and Florida State @ Maryland). Stanford is a tough gritty team, but they just can’t score enough (63rd in the nation at just over 29/game). And they gave up 54 to a UofSuck team that was shut out 49-0 earlier in Eugene. The last two years in this series will look eerily similar to this result. 2010: Oregon 52 Stanford 31; 2011: Oregon 53 Stanford 30; 2012: Oregon 58 Stanford 31.
Until next time…
No comments:
Post a Comment