I did not watch a lot of football yesterday as I intended. I actually had almost a full Saturday off work and other things just came up. Did flip around and catch bits and pieces of the evening games......
It looks like the Sun Belt continues to put in a good showing against BCS teams. Middle TN surprisingly beat Georgia Tech in rather convincing fashion. The conference schedule gets in full swing for the most part and I will have to put MTSU in contention. They do have another tough non conference outing with Mississippi State down the road and it will be interesting to see how they hold up there.
Is WVU a top 10 team? Their offense certainly is ready. Defense? Not so much. A team will not win a "national championship" (or likely a conference one) with such a porous defense. Just ask Art Briles, Kevin Sumlin, and Mike Leach. All of them had teams with prolific offenses but a defense that could not stop a high school team. The final results were always predictable.......
Is LSU a top 10 team? Hard to say. Right now I will have to say no. The talent is there I think, but there is a mystifying lack of discipline and ball control. The contest last night should have been nothing more than a scrimmage but the Louisiana Tigers had to fight hard to beat the IAA Tigers of Towson. Towson is rated 13 in the FCS poll, so they are not a team that will just roll over. They are certainly better than Idaho and may be about on par with North Texas, but still.....
The Crimson Tide did have a bit of trouble with Ole Miss last night but I don't think their number one ranking is in jeopardy. Right now I will have to go with Bama/Oregon as 1 and 2.
The Hogs are dismal and TAMU may (perhaps) be a bit better than expected. Georgia appears to be the real deal, their troubles with a pesky Tennessee squad notwithstanding.
South Carolina had some troubles also but came out in the third and starting playing a bit of ball. I watched a few minutes of this one and I don't have a problem putting South Carolina in the bottom half of the top 10.
The Longhorns are good. Much much better than last year. Right now they are a top 10 team and no mistake. David Ash is going to be an excellent college QB.
Boise State is not top 25 right now. Sorry. They may be back later in the season but right now it appears they are still in learning mode. I don't expect Coach Peterson to be out of the conversation for more than 1 season though.
Is the Big Ten the Big East? Not quite. Well maybe. Just not a good conference this year. Wisconsin is a disappointment, Nebraska is only pretty good. Michigan State is one dimensional, Michigan not so good, etc. etc. Ohio State may be the only bright spot but they are under sanction and irrelevant.
Oregon is the only team in the PAC 12 that is really good. It is easy to forget Oregon State, but they seem to be building a good season. I am not sold on any Arizona team quite yet. USC and Stanford are top 15 teams but certainly not top 10. One or the other might be back though. Other than Alabama (and Oregon perhaps) there does not seem to be any really dominating teams in D1 this year. There likely will be some top 10 teams with 2 (3?) losses before all is said and done.
Is it time now to consider Louisiana Tech, Ohio, Nevada, Cincinnati, and perhaps even Utah State (well maybe not) in the top 25. Yes. Past time for at least one of them. I am still not sold on Louisville being a top 25 team.
Frank Beamer's team seems to be doing what it does best. He always has talent and seems to find a way to lose with them. Perhaps he should look in the mirror?
FSU may yet be a team to talk about when a "national championship" conversation begins. They are a good team and right now I would put them no lower than number four.
KSU was off as was Oklahoma. Even though the Sooners did lose to KSU I am not convinced that they are not a top 10 squad. I think they will be back. Oklahoma State has a good young QB and may find a way into the top 25 again when all is said and done. Or not.
This season is shaping up to be a pretty fun. With a lot of parity (and a good deal of mediocrity), there will be more surprises along the way. Gotta love it!
2 comments:
If I were Les Miles, I would go borrow a Marine Corps drill sergeant for the week and indulge in some close order drill to instill some discipline and focus in my purple and gold clowns. "This is a football. You hold on to this. You do not drop this. If you drop this I drop the wrath of Gawd on your head." Maybe clue them in that they must not start moving until the QB tells them to start moving. That sort of thing. "This white stripe is the sideline. Once the opponent crosses that line, don't hit him."
Arkansas is pretty much as bad as SDSU. Maybe we should have them play each other. I agree with your wife, SDSU has prettier uniforms.
I also leave Bama at #1, but that was an unexpectetedly good game.
Les is going to have to do something. Unless they right the ship they will find themselves out of contentin pdq.
SDSU is not very good. I have always kind of liked the Aztecs. Maybe someday.....
The Razorbacks need to revamp the entire coaching staff now. Not at the end of the season, but right now.
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