Week 9 Complete...On to Week 10

OU Football and my world

2007/10/29

@ 11:29 AM (24 months, 19 days ago)

Finally, a week without a top 5 shakeup...sort of. Oklahoma got leapfrogged in the AP and Coaches poll by Oregon, who proved they belong at the top of the Pac 10 by beating USC. Question is whether they will stay there. This week they host undefeated Arizona State (who beat Cal last weekend). The most exciting game turned out to be the rainy Thursday night game in Blacksburg, VA. Va Tech was given a ton of credit, but it was Matt Ryan who proved his mettle, leading the Eagles to a come from behind victory in a very tough venue. UConn beat South Florida in a somewhat surprising effort, and UGA pulled out the cocktail party to beat Florida by nearly two TDs. Who is the team to beat in the SEC East? Ohio State dominated the hell out of the Nittany Lions, and really shouldn't be challenged until they travel to the Big House for their annual battle with the Michigan Wolverines. On to Week 10.

Texas A&M travels to Norman to take on the Sooners. The Sooners control their own destiny at this point, but an Aggie win would put them back in the driver's seat, by virtue of their win over Okie State earlier this season. The Sooners have had a week to prepare, while the Aggies suffered a stinging loss in College Station to the surging Kansas Jayhawks. Will the Sooners prove that their struggles against Iowa State were the exception, or will the Aggies rule in Norman?

In what may be the game of the week, LSU travels to Tuscaloosa to take on the strange animal that is the Crimson Tide. If the same Tide that walloped the Vols 41-17 shows up, les Tigres may be in for a wild ride. If the Tide that lost close games to UGA and FSU (and needed luck to win at Ole Miss, I might add) shows up, it could be a foregone conclusion. The one thing in Nick Saban's favor is that he had two weeks to get ready for LSU. The biggest thing going against him is that Les Miles had the same two weeks to get ready for Bama. Which team made the best use of their two weeks and is Bama really ready for prime time?

Mizzou, possibly the best team in the North division of the Big XII and now ranked in the top 10 for the first time since 1981, travels to Boulder to take on the resurgent Buffaloes. The Tigers struggled a bit at home against the Iowa State Cyclones, leading by only a TD late in the 3rd quarter before pulling away, and must travel to a very dangerous venue (remember that the Buffs handed South leader Oklahoma their only loss of the season here at the end of September) to take on an inspired CU team. The Buffs are fresh off a close win in Lubbock against pinball machine scoring Texas Tech. Colorado actually dominated much of the game before the quick strike Red Raiders put up two late scores to pull within 5. This Buff defense, which intercepted Graham Harrell 4 times, is for real. Will Mizzou move one step closer to San Antonio and the Big XII Championship Game, or will Colorado make itself bowl eligible?

Florida State, still lacking an identity late in the season, finally broke a losing skid by toppling the Duke Blue Devils. Now they must travel to Baaston to take on the Cinderella-ish BC Eagles. It doesn't seem to favor the Seminoles, especially with the two extra days that BC has had to prepare following their victory in Blacksburg Thursday night. Still, if Bobby Bowden has shown anything, it is resilience and cunning. His team will be prepared to take the fight to the Eagles. Will the Noles suck the wind out from beneath the Eagles' wings? Better question -- will the Noles wear those ridiculous 'Unconquered' black unis in Boston?

In a game that I'm relatively certain nobody pegged as a 'game to watch' before the season started, Arizona State travels to Autzen stadium to take on the skyrocketing Oregon Ducks. Both teams did the impossible last week, the Ducks stunning the ever-present USC Trojans and the Sun Devils slapping the Cal Bears silly. Who knew? ASU, undefeated and rolling, now must face the vaunted spread-and-score offense and wiley Dennis Dixon. In the land of soul-crushing sound and look-the other-way officiating (sorry, couldn't help that jab at Oregon home-cooking). Did nobody else notice the blatant holding on nearly every play by the Ducks last week? If they could do it last week, they can do it again. Will the Sun Devils remain atop the Pac-10 (and in the top 5 of the BCS), or will the multi-colored Oregon Ducks climb that ladder?

Stay tuned, sports fans. These questions and more find an answer this week.

My top 10:

1. the OSU - waiting for the battle in the Big House

2. BC - High atop the ACC and unbeaten

3. ASU - Unbeaten so far. Tough test at Oregon

4. LSU - Tough test at Bama

5. KU - When will the Jayhawks lose?

6. Oregon - Great O, tough D, home cooking

7. OU - Sooners get aTm after two weeks off

8. Mizzou - Looking like the best of the North

9. WV - Best running team in the country

10. UConn - Did they really beat USF last week?