CFB Week 9 Recap

Well, in a week that I thought had the high possibility of being an upset Saturday, was pretty much chalk. It was kind of disappointing, considering one of the upsets I wanted was OSU over PSU but I guess the good thing is that it just makes these next few weeks that much more exciting as these teams near the top try to avoid the dreaded upset. But on to the recap of another great week of college football.

THE BIG 10 THINGS I LEARNED THIS WEEK

1. Big Ten Battles: Exciting but ugly - For a true football fan, the OSU-PSU game was a real football game. Both offenses struggling for every yard. Punters becoming as important as quarterbacks. And defense imposing their will. It was a true Big Ten game. And as usual, it came down to turnovers and (unfortunately for me) it hurt Ohio State. Pryor's fumble was the turning point in the game and like good teams do, Penn State took advantage. Props to OSU's defense for doing all they could but more props to Penn State's D for bringing a freshman QB back to reality. After a walk through the park against MSU, Pryor found out what a real Big Ten defense is. Good game for the diehard football fan.

2. Penn State SHOULD go 12-0 - No doubt that Ohio State was the biggest hurdle for the Nittany Lions. Now that they've gotten over it, it looks to be a fairly easy ride to 12-0. But I'm not sold yet. The defense is for real and the offense obviously has its weapons. But 2 of the 3 teams left have the potential to pull off the big upset. The game I really look at is the trip to Iowa. The Hawkeyes have been playing some good football this year. We'll know just how good they are after this upcoming week when they take on Illinois.

3. Big East did their best ACC impression - You know, people can say all they want that the Big Ten is weak but consider the Big East and ACC in that discussion too please. Right when I thought Pitt could become the team to beat and a legit Top 25 team, they lose BAD to Rutgers. How they gave up 54 points to a 2-win team that only scored more than 24 once this season before the game, I don't know. Oh, and don't forget South Florida's loss to Louisville. So now, there is just one Big East squad in the top 25 (#24 USF). Just a joke...

4. Speaking of the ACC...it's terrible - It's just a conference of mediocrity. Georgia Tech jumps into the Top 25 and has control of the conference race. What happens next? A loss at home to Virginia. BC makes their way into the Top 25 too. And what do they do? Lose 45-24 to UNC. The only somewhat consistent team has been FSU but they aren't even that good. It's a shame that the ACC and Big East are guaranteed a BCS spot because they are gonna deprive a good SEC or Big 12 team of a BCS bowl game

5. Thank goodness for USC beating Arizona - I thought hard about this during the USC game. Do i really want them to lose? And as much as I hate Pete Carroll and the Trojans, I said no. Why? Because if the Trojans lost that game, a team like Cal, Zona, Oregon St., or Oregon finds themself ina BCS game, making it the BCS games a joke this year, with 3 bad conference champs and a non-BCS team like Utah or Boise too. Yikes. I have a strong feeling that no matter what, USC is out of the title hunt unless a slew of upsets occur because the Pac-10 is so weak this year. USC can lose to Notre Dame, that's just fine with me, but they really need to win the Pac-10 just so football in January is fun to watch.

6. Texas Tech may be the final straw for Texas - So far, the 'Horns are 3 for 3 in their tough 4-game stretch so give them credit. But something has to be said about how they struggled in the end against OK State. Are they getting tired? Only they know but they looked it. Texas Tech is gonna be tough for the Longhorn defense to keep up with too. Graham Harrell is a throwing maniac and Michael Crabtree is a DB's worst nightmare. And with the game being in Lubbock, there will be no home crowd for the 'Horns to get energy from. No doubt Texas is still the top team in the nation. But just like UGA, the tough schedule may come back to bite them.

7. The race to the BCS title game is down to 8 - Pretty safe to say that now as we head into Week 10. The teams are Texas, Bama, PSU, OU, Florida, Texas Tech, OK State and UGA. Some may include USC but again, I think they're done because any of these 8 teams even with one loss have a better resume than the Trojans. Thing to remember is that Texas Tech still has to play Texas and OU, and OU has OKST. FLA and UGA play each other this upcoming week. Bama and PSU have just one ranked opponent left. And all but PSU would have a conference title game (Yeah, 7 of the 8 are in the SEC or Big 12). So when watching on the weekend, keep an eye on these 8 because as long as they have just one loss, they are in the hunt.

8. It's time for playoffs in college football - I know this is a common subject but think about it. The ACC and Big East are getting teams into the BCS for no reason. Meanwhile, there are some great teams in the Big 12 and SEC that will be subjected to the Holiday Bowl and Chick-Fil-A Bowl. Instead, we could truly have the 8 best teams in a playoff system that takes just 3 weeks. But I guess I should just forget about this and move on...

9. What happens if we have 3 undefeated non-BCS teams? - I don't know the answer to this question. It's more like a question to those of you who read (and I appreciate that). But right now, we have three teams with a strong possibility of going undefeated (Utah, Boise State, and Ball State). In my mind, that means all three deserve a shot at a huge payday in a BCS game. But because of the dumb system we are in, odds are it won't happen. It's just a shame that despite every other college football division has it figured out, the one division most of America cares about does not.

10. The Oklahoma bias - Oklahoma is #4 and lost to Texas at a neutral site by 10. Oklahoma State is #9 and lost to Texas by 4 in Austin. But let the comparison continue. Oklahoma beat Kansas at home while OK State beat Missouri on the road. And this is why I hate the preseason poll. Because OK State was unranked and underestimated at the beginning of the year, they are being penalized. Thankfully the two teams play each other to end the conference season and we'll really find out who is better.

11. The Gophers are Golden again - It's kinda flown under the radar but mad props go out to Tim Brewster (who?) for the job he has done at Minnesota. They had one win last year. Now, they are 7-1 and their lone loss is to Ohio State. That's not too shabby. They are on track to play in a New Year's Day bowl game (Outback or Capital One), which is ridiculous considering where they were just a year ago. And now, they find themselves in the Top 25. Time to give some love to Minnesota. while the Vikings lavish at the bottom, the Gophers are at near the top.

BEST GAME - Georgia vs. LSU
I watched and listened to a ton of pundits talk about this game and how low-scoring it would be. Instead, it turned into a fun SEC shootout. It was big play after big play and while I am a fan of a defensive game, this one was fun. Seeing UGA's best play their best for once was exciting and seeing each team counter the other was fun.

WORST GAME - Texas Tech vs. Kansas
For a game that I thought upset potential, this game just got ugly real quick. I thought KU had the offense to stick with Tech but apparently, I was wrong. This game got so bad that Rob Stone, the ESPN sideline guy, did reports from outside the stadium talking to KU fans who were leaving. Yeah, that bad.

OVER/UNDER
It hurts me to say this but PITTSBURGH is/was OVERRATED. I guess they are out of the top 25 now but man, talk about crashing and burning against Rutgers. A bad loss for a team that people were finally starting to believe in.
Meanwhile, TEXAS TECH may have proved that they are UNDERRATED. And even more specifically, their defense. Holding Todd Reesing and the Jayhawks to 14 is a statement to the Texas offense. The Red Raiders are more than offense these days,

HE/SHE SAID WHAT?
"I dont know who's happier, Mr or Mrs Stafford. If that keeps up there might be a little Matthew coming." - Gary Danielson after a shot showing them celebrating a good play by Georgia.

3 QUESTIONS
1. Gameday is going to Lubbock, meaning they will be at a Texas game 3 out of 4 weeks. Is Georgia/Florida not worthy enough of Gameday, just for the sake of getting away from the Longhorns?

2. Whose seat is hotter? Philip Fulmer at Tennessee or Tyrone Willingham at Washington?

3. Will Ohio University embarrass themself again on national TV (ESPNU, 7pm)? (My pick is OU to win)