Week 8 Complete -- To Week 9
Being #2 is hazardous to your football health.
Let it be proclaimed: You don't want to be #2. Not this year anyway. Yet another #2 has fallen. A week after Cal fell to Oregon State and two weeks after Stanford pulled off their miracle over USC, it was South Florida falling to Rutgers on the road. I would be lying if I said it wasn't expected. All the characteristics of an upset were in place. On the road, on Thursday, at night, with a huge bullseye plastered on their collective chests, the South Florida Bulls' hopes for a perfect season crumbled. South Carolina's unexpected loss to Vandy was shocking. Alabama's punking of Tennessee was shocking.
Before the weekend, I never would have guessed that LSU beating Auburn in Baton Rouge would be shocking, but it was. Auburn had LSU beat. Down by only a point, LSU had not called a time out and only 6 seconds were left on the clock when they hiked the ball. Was it to kick the game-winning Field Goal? No. It was to have Matt Flynn launch a 22-yard pass to Demetrius Byrd in the end zone as time expired. After the game, coach Les Miles sounded as if he didn't even realize what happened. Obviously happy that they survived, he kept alluding to having enough time on the clock. Perhaps after reviewing the tape, he'll have a different take on it. Skin of their teeth.
And yet, the most surprising thing in my eyes was a lack-luster performance by the Oklahoma Sooners at bottom-feeder Iowa State. The painful Sooner performance was enough to allow unbeaten Arizona State and once-beaten Oregon to leapfrog the Sooners despite losses by three teams in their vicinity. Apparently, the computers don't like the Sooners' schedule. OU is #4 in both the AP and Coaches polls, but 6th in the BCS thanks to the computers. I suppose it is only fair play that the Sooners now take a hit from the same computers that put them into the 2004 Sugar Bowl after losing the Big XII championship game.
This week, like last week, begins on a Thursday night, as the #2 (gulp!!) BC Eagles must travel to Blacksburg to take on the Va Tech Hokies. Again, on the road, on Thursday, at night, with a huge bullseye plastered on their collective chests. The Eagles have one of the best QBs in the country in Matt Ryan, who has thrown for 2,148 yards and 17 TDs with only 6 INTs enroute to BC having a perfect record through 7 games. The Hokies, on the other hand, got derailed by LSU in Baton Rouge in week 2 48-7. Since then, they have stayed perfect, blasting Clemson two weeks ago 41-23 in Death Valley. Will the BC Eagles escape the curse of #2, or will the Hokies maintain their perfect conference record?
Florida and Georgia meet up for their annual Cocktail Party (oops...the NCAA might hunt me down and murder my children for saying it out loud) in Jacksonville. It should be a fun one. UGA has been struggling to find an identity much of the season. They got blasted at Tennessee, but won at Bama. They lost close to South Carolina, but won close against the same Vandy team that beat South Carolina this past weekend. About the only thing in the Bulldogs' favor is the two weeks they have had to prepare for this. UF, once among the favorites for the BCS championship, finally got back on track in Lexington this past weekend after dropping back to back games to Auburn and at LSU. The Gators are still in the hunt for the SEC East, and beating the Dawgs would put them one step closer. Will Tim Tebow further his Heisman claim, or will the Dawgs pull out a win in J-ville?
USC, another odds-on favorite at the beginning of the season for the national championship, lost a ton of respect when they lost at home to bottom-feeder Stanford. Last week, they became the second team this season to blank the Notre Dame Fighting (pffffft) Irish 38-0. They did it in South Bend. The Trojans haven't really dominated anyone of note. At the same time, they've only lost once. Whether the ratings beating they took is worthy will be evident this weekend when they travel to Autzen stadium to take on the Oregon Ducks. The Ducks, in contrast, have stomped on everybody they've played (to include Michigan in the Big House). Everybody but Cal at the end of September. Cal won by a TD for the first time in Autzen stadium since 1987 on September 29. Will USC regain their swagger, or will the Ducks prove they belong in the top 5?
Ohio State must travel to Happy Valley to defend their top spot against the Nittany Lions. Penn State won by 5 points at Indiana this past weekend, which complements Ohio State winning by a touchdown against Michigan State in the Shoe. Beaver Stadium will doubtless be packed and roaring come game time. The Buck D is stifling, but the offense has been questionable at times. Will the Bucks survive their first road test, or will the Lions roar for Joe Pa?
Cal must travel to fiery Sun Devil Stadium for a matchup between nationally ranked Pac 10 teams. Arizona State is in the top 5 of the BCS for the first time this season. The biggest win for the Sun Devils was a week 2 drubbing of Colorado in Tempe. Many are wondering how real the Devils are. Beating the Bears would go a long way toward establishing that. Cal is on a two game skid, after becoming the second #2 to fall two weeks ago to the Beavers of Oregon State, and losing last week to the same UCLA Bruins that Notre Dame stomped in their only win. Before questioning Cal's strength, one should recognize that they handed Oregon their only defeat a few weeks ago in Eugene, and they beat Tennessee by two TDs to start the season. Which team will establish legitimacy in the desert?
Stay tuned, sports fans. These questions and more find an answer in week 9.
My Top 10 for this week:
1. the OSU - tough test at Penn State
2. BC - tough test at Va Tech
3. ASU - Unbeaten so far. Tough test vs. Cal
4. LSU - Gutsy? Crazy? Take your pick.
5. KU - When will the Jayhawks lose?
6. Oregon - Great O
7. USC - Best performance last week
8. OU - Sooner D is only reason they beat ISU
9. UF - Did what LSU couldn't last week
10. Mizzou - Dominant against TTech last week
