Hey guys, I haven't posted in a while, but I promise to be more involved now that college football season has kicked off. Here is my post-Week 1 top 25. As always, questions, comments, concerns are appreciated. Argue with me if you have a disagreement, but I'll warn you ahead of time, you better have the facts or insight to back it up.
1) Florida Gators: Is there really any debate here? Florida was the near-unanimous selection going into the season and a 62-3 sacrificing of Charleston Southern in the opener left no reason yet to doubt Jeebus Tebow and the disciples. The youth, inexperience, and injuries at WR might. Anybody else think Florida loses in the regular season this year, after the embarrassing Ole Miss home loss last year, with a schedule that doesn't include SEC favorites Alabama and the aforementioned Rebels? Yeah, I don't either.
2) Texas Longhorns: In case you don't know, I am a HUGE UT fan. To put them behind Florida flat out pisses me off, but for now it's where they belong. Injuries and academic clearinghouse BS have stung UT this off-season and opener more than almost every team in the country, and it showed with a lackluster 59-20 drubbing of Louisiana-Monroe. With OU seemingly falling apart like local business when Wal-Mart moves in, the Big 12 is UT's for the taking, as is the shot at the Gators (uhhh, well, pending potential BCS shenanigans) that UT should have gotten last season.
3) USC Trojans: USC was down 3-0 to San Jose State in the Coliseum after the first quarter of the season. Then they scored 56 points in three quarters. Like, in a row. With a true freshman quarterback. Want to know how insanely talented SC is? They got 28 points better...IN ONE QUARTER. This may not be the Trojans' year (true freshman QB, only two defensive starters returning, Florida and Texas are loaded, Cal should be a tough game), but ask any of the top teams who they definitely DON'T want to play at the end of the season in a BCS bowl and they'd be lying if they didn't offer up USC right away.
4) Alabama Crimson Tide: You know, that Nick Saban guy's a decent coach. He loses his best two offensive lineman in All-Everything tackle Andre Smith and steady center Antoine Caldwell, he throws together a whole new line for the season opener against a vaunted Virginia Tech front and proceeds to run the ball down their throats. Oh, and that defense is pretty good. Like starting running back Mark Ingram had five less yards than the entire Hokie offense good. Expect the Tide to, errr, Roll into the SEC title game and give Florida a hell of a fight just like they did last year.
5) Penn State Nittany Lions: I feel there's a huge divide between the current top four and the rest of the top teams, so, to me, these next few teams are pretty much jumbled together. Count me among the group that thinks PSU was impressive in their first half, 31-0 dismantling of poor Akron. Joe Pa called off the dogs in the second half and quarterback Daryll Clark still managed 353 yards and three touchdowns. Plus, after Ohio State's pathetic display on Saturday, Penn State should be a huge favorite to go undefeated and win the Big 11. Their prize for that? USC again in the Rose Bowl...
6) Oklahoma State Cowboys: I plan to address the Pokes in a separate thread, so I'll keep it simple here. Great win for the Pokes--one of the more important non-conference wins they've ever had. As a fan of the Big 12, I was proud to see OSU only give up a dime, chant "Big 12" at the end of the game to rep the conference, and, obviously, win the game and get the monkey off the back that we couldn't beat the vaunted SEC. Somewhat improved defense + offense was...enough = win vs. Georgia team that is as vanilla as that yummy smelling extract you're not supposed to taste.
7) California Golden Bears: Yeah, I know, it's Cal. But how impressive was Cal this past weekend? They took a Maryland team that many people thought could be under the radar and essentially made them look like a high school team. A bad high school team. Tailback Jahvid Best lived up to his namesake (13.7 yards per carry is almost obscene) and quarterback Kevin Riley shredded the Terps' secondary like he was trying to get rid of illegal tax forms. October 3rd against USC in Berkeley is setting up as one of the biggest and best games of the season.
8) Ole Miss Rebels: Here I go, chance to finally figure out what I myself think about the Rebs. The Memphis game last Sunday was an adventure to say the least. Jevan Snead was absolutely atrocious in the first half--two terrible picks and not a whole lot of production yards-wise either. In fact, the entire team looked like they had been reading their press clippings over the summer. The third quarter was more of the same, but in the fourth period Mississippi finally came alive and put the game out of the grasp of the talented and game Tigers. The 45-14 score looks great on paper, but the Rebels need a ton of work if they truly want to compete in the vicious SEC West.
9) Boise State Broncos: The Broncs are mainly here as a requisite. They held serve at home against a farcically bad Oregon team, and that's basically all you can ask of them so far. Kellen Moore looked great and played with confidence, as did the defense, but the rest of the offense was downright ugly. None of this really matters, though, as Boise State will waltz to the BCS behind the strength of a pathetic conference schedule and an overrated win against Blount's Boppers.
10) Ohio State Buckeyes: THE Ohio State University. More like THE disappointment of the college football opening weekend. The Buckeyes almost lost to freakin' Navy on Saturday. Yeah, Terrelle Pryor is that darn good. But is the rest of the team really that darn bad? Is the coaching really that horrific? Tress has never been nor will be known as an offensive guru, but it's amazing to me how much they (the coaches) were able to limit Pryor's freak talent against such a mediocre opponent at home. Oh yeah, and that USC team I mentioned earlier comes calling next weekend. tOSU gave up an ugly 186 rushing yards to the Midshipmen last Saturday; USC rolled up 342 rushing yards in their opener. Does anybody put Navy's athletes' talent in the same dimension as USC's?
11) BYU Cougars: A tough, yet slower-than-molasses defense combined with too many penalties and too little execution on offense was helped by a timely Sam Bradford shoulder injury and OU's own hapless mental frame of mind. But BYU won and that's all that matters when you're playing the number 3 team in the country.
12) LSU Tigers: Jordan Jefferson and one of the most uber-talented offenses LSU has ever had looked solid. But man, that defense gave up 23 points to a Washington team that scored 20 points only twice last year, never broke 30, and, oh yeah, didn't win a single game...
13) Miami Hurricanes: Yeah, I was THAT impressed with The U. Jacory Harris looked like a future superstar at QB and the Canes have no dearth of talent at the skill positions on offense. That defense looks like they're getting back to the speed and talent that Miami has grown accustomed to for the past two decades.
14) Oklahoma Sooners: OU might be the hardest team on this list to find a spot for. Jermaine Gresham is having season ending surgery and God knows how long Sam Bradford will be out for. That game in Coral Gables is looking more and more like a loss, and the Sooners don't even want to dream about October 17th against UT. The Sooners have the feel of the house in the beginning of The Wizard of Oz.
15) Notre Dame Fighting Irish: *sigh* I've been trying to hold off on them for as long as I can, because honestly I hate Our Lady even more than Oklahoma and Texas A&M, which is saying a lot. I don't know what to say, after doubting them every year maybe this is actually it--Jimmy Clausen was literally almost perfect and Golden Tate could be the best receiver in the nation. And an Irish defense delivers a shut out? What's going on here?
16) TCU Horned Frogs: TCU gets the week off but garners a win from attrition as a bunch of the teams in this part of the rankings looked very unimpressive. The defense will do its thing year in and year out, but can the offense ever catch up enough to convince voters to put the Frogs in the BCS?
17) Cincinnati Bearcats: Cincy was one of my overrated teams before the year started, but they certainly proved me wrong with a 47-15 whooping of fellow Big East favorite Rutgers in which the Cats called off the dogs early in the fourth quarter and still dropped half a Benjamin on the Scarlet Knights.
18) North Carolina Tar Heels: All Butch Davis does is lose three star senior receivers and change his offensive style to a power rushing attack to the tune of 261 rushing yards. Just goes to show why all those Miami teams of the early decade were so damn good and talented--Davis is one heck of a coach and recruiter.
19) Nebraska Cornhuskers: Roy Helu, Jr. was unstoppable for the Huskers, rushing for 152 yards on only 16 carries. The defense, which only gave up three points, seems to be getting back to their Blackshirt ways under coach Bo Pelini.
20) Kansas Jayhawks: Todd Reesing is back for his 18th and final year with the program--he would be the best QB in almost any other conference. Dez Briscoe and Kerry Meier make a potent receiving duo, but can the Jayhawks replace three starting LBs that were the heart and the soul of only a decent defense last year?
21) Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets: The Jackets fall hard in my rankings after a lackluster 37-17 win over mighty Jacksonville State. The Paul Johnson triple option spread offense befuddled opponents last year, but a porous LSU defense figured it out with ease in the Peach Bowl last year. You think the rest of the ACC has looked at those tapes at all?
22) Missouri Tigers: What can I say about my very own Mizzou Tigers--they were phenomenal on offense and solid defensively against a talented Illinois team that, admittedly, looks like a M.A.S.H. unit. Is Blaine Gabbert really as good as he played last Saturday? If so, Mizzou immediately vaults to the top of the division race along with Nebraska and Kansas.
23) Florida State Seminoles: They were barely ranked before a tough loss to Miami on Monday, but what else do you want to see from them? The offense was clicking behind talented Christian Ponder and a very good offensive line. The defense, led by true freshman Greg Reid, was old school Seminole talented. Expect this team to be in a rematch with the Hurricanes in the ACC championship.
24) Virginia Tech Hokies: Beamer ball kept the Hokies in the game against Bama, but eventually the better team took over in the fourth quarter and dominated down the stretch. With no Darren Evans to hand off to, it feels like the offense is entirely on dual-threat (or single-threat, since his passing is abysmal) Tyrod Taylor's shoulders, cause, well, it is. Taylor is not ready for that kind of responsibility yet.
25) Tennessee Volunteers: Alright, I'm officially jumping on the Lane Kiffin bandwagon. The guy stirs up trouble like cake batter, but you have to admit he's put Rocky Top back on the map after a three or four year hiatus. Then he goes out with a team that's supposedly two or three years away and absolutely massacres poor Western Kentucky 63-7. This is a team that lost to Wyoming last year. Who else is looking forward to seeing what black magic he can pull to escape Urban's wrath on Sept. 19th?
-Blake Borron
Miami gave up 34 points to FSU. When has FSU ever scored that many? Thank god for terrible FSU tackling. Miami is 10 spots too high and will probably be 1-3 after September.
ReplyDeleteOU should not have moved down 11 spots because of a one point loss on a neutral field against a ranked team without the Heisman winner.
Mizzou has no business being on this list. The offense was way inconsistent against a middle school team from central IL.
Va Tech down to 24? I guess you're not giving 'Bama any credit.
FSU still ranked? If they can't win a home game against Miami, who are they gonna beat?
How do you take Georgia off the list for losing at OSU? You even said they dominated the first half.
I like Tennessee, that's a solid 25, even if it means leaving Utah off.
FSU scored that many since for the first time in more than half a decade they have a decent offensive line and a quarterback who actually knows how to play.
ReplyDeleteMiami will be favored against Va Tech (no offense), Georgia Tech (37-17 against Jacksonville State), and OU (almost guaranteed without Bradford, terrible offensive line, center is out, star TE is out for season, both backup centers are injured, injuries basically everywhere). I expect them to be 4-0, and certainly no worse than 3-1.
OU is 11 spots down because they are flat out bad. BYU has a SLOW defense and OU ran the ball at will on them, but couldn't score points? How does that bode when they actually play a team with speed? Bradford wasn't great when he was in there (not his fault he was being blocked for by high school level players), and that team is simply falling apart. They will be like Texas three years ago after McCoy got hurt.
You said yourself rankings based on play, not hype.
Va Tech is IMO just not a good team. They literally DO NOT have an offense. I think Bama's very good, but I don't only look at the score. Bama didn't even play that well compared to how I think they can, and IMHO Va Tech was lucky to not lose by 20+.
FSU is ranked because I have high esteem for Miami and FSU should have probably won that game. You ask me who they beat? I say anybody else they play other than Florida. I think the do in fact drop another ACC game somewhere, but I expect to see them in the conference 'ship.
Georgia: I never believed the hype like many people did pre-season. So to say they aren't ranked now isn't that much of a drop for them. They scored 10 points...on Oklahoma State! If you dominate a half (I said first two drives but whatever) then you should have more than 10 points. The offense is not Va Tech bad, but it's in trouble and Trinton Sturdivant (their best offensive lineman) is yet again ACL'd for the season. I never respected them WITH Stafford and Moreno last year, so it's hard to respect them w/o them when they don't give me any reason to.
Tennessee is a definite dark horse (if you can call them that with all the publicity they have been getting) to get to something like the Cotton/Outback Bowl. I know the SEC West is loaded, and they should all beat up on each other, allowing Tennessee to grab one of the upper bowl spots. Here's a scary thought: the only player anybody wanted to talk about before UT-East played a game was Eric Berry, the best defensive player in the nation. How many people mentioned him after the game?
Utah I never understood. They lost their star QB and a couple NFL defectors, yet they're just supposed to keep it rolling? I mean they are good but that opening game score shows the talent exodus hurt at least a little...
Love the banter, keep it coming!
Va Tech should not drop that far after competing with a very good alabama team. You almost have them out of the top 25.
ReplyDeleteNot convinced on FSU. Ever since 2005, Bowden hasn't been able to win consistently enough to keep this program in national title talk. I say 8-4, and the only reason they win 8 is because the ACC is the football version of basketball's SEC. They are at BYU, at North Carolina and at Florida. That gives them 4 losses. If they can win at BC, at Wake, at Clemson, and beat GT and USF then they'll make my prediction of 8-4. Hmm...looking more like 7-5 or 6-6.
ReplyDeleteMaybe you're right J, their schedule is super tough (even by real world instead of ACC standards). I admit I hadn't perused it before hand.
ReplyDeleteI personally think BYU isn't that good and they can definitely beat UNC on the road. Florida is a loss on the road, but BC and Wake are both down. Clemson...well, I'll let you know after tonight's game. GT...well, same answer. USF I still have to see for myself but I'd assume they're the same team as the past few years.
I just think that both (FSU and the U) have started to turn the corner and will be top 10-12 preseason next year like they should be. They recruit better than the rest of the conference year in and year out, that talent has to factor in eventually.