Week 3 College Football Newsletter

The Bonehead Call of the Week
The honor this week goes to Oklahoma State's head coach Mike Gundy for starting Zac Robinson over Bobby Reid at quarterback against Troy. Reid is the more accurate passer and the more dangerous double-threat for the Cowboys. Throughout the game, the announcers seemed to be awaiting word on why Gundy made this move, if perhaps Reid violated team rules, was ill or injured, but no word came of it. The fact of the matter was that Gundy made a bonehead call. Robinson finished the game completing 18 of 37 passes (48.7%) for 191 yards (10.6 ypc and 5.2 ypa), 1 touchdown and 2 interceptions. A good chunk of his completions and yards came during Troy's scrub time at the tail-end of the 41-23 shellacking the Cowboys suffered at the hands of the Trojans.

The Bonehead Play of the Week
The noun "play" should be plural, as this award is being handed to the Wisconsin defense for allowing 31 points to Division I-AA Citadel in the Badgers 45-31 win over the Bulldogs. It's not as if Wisconsin's offense put the defense in many bad predicaments either. Both teams turned the ball over only once. But, those mighty Bulldogs put together 23 first downs in the game, were 5 for 12 on third down (41.7%), 1 for 1 on 4th down (100%), racked up 377 total yards of offense, including 254 through the air (7.3 ypa) and 123 on the ground (3.4 ypc). The Citadel even completed 23 of 35 pass attempts (65.7%) and were close to being even with the Badgers in Time of Possession (28:19 to 31:41).

Conference Breakdown
*indicates Division I-AA opponent

ACC
West Virginia 31 Maryland 14 (0-1)
Virginia Tech 28 Ohio 7 (1-1)
Florida State 16 Colorado 6 (2-1)
Miami (Florida) 23 Florida International 9 (3-1)
Clemson 38 Furman 10 (4-1)*
Virginia 22 North Carolina 20 (5-2)
North Carolina State 38 Wofford 17 (6-2)*
Boston College 24 Georgia Tech 10 (7-3)
Duke 20 Northwestern 14 (8-3)
Wake Forest 21 Army 10 (9-3)

Big East
West Virginia 31 Maryland 14 (1-0)
Kentucky 40 Louisville 34 (1-1)
Rutgers 59 Norfolk State 0 (2-1)*
Cincinnati 47 Miami (Ohio) 10 (3-1)
Connecticut 22 Temple 17 (4-1)
Illinois 41 Syracuse 20 (4-2)
Michigan State 17 Pittsburgh 13 (4-3)

Big Ten
Michigan 38 Notre Dame 0 (1-0)
Michigan State 17 Pittsburgh 13 (2-0)
Penn State 45 Buffalo 24 (3-0)
Florida Atlantic 42 Minnesota 39 (3-1)
Ohio State 33 Washington 14 (4-1)
Indiana 41 Akron 24 (5-1)
Wisconsin 45 Citadel 31 (6-1)*
Iowa State 15 Iowa 13 (6-2)
Duke 20 Northwestern 14 (6-3)
Purdue 45 Central Michigan (7-3)
Illinois 41 Syracuse 20 (8-3)

Big XII
Texas 35 Central Florida 32 (1-0)
Texas A&M 54 Louisiana-Monroe 14 (2-0)
Texas Tech 59 Rice 24 (3-0)
Baylor 34 Texas State 27 (4-0)*
Kansas State 61 Missouri State 10 (5-0)*
Troy 41 Oklahoma State 23 (5-1)
Kansas 45 Toledo 13 (6-1)
USC 49 Nebraska 31 (6-2)
Florida State 16 Colorado 6 (6-3)
Iowa State 15 Iowa 13 (7-3)
Missouri 52 Western Michigan 24 (8-3)
Oklahoma 54 Utah State 3 (9-3)

Pac-10
USC 49 Nebraska 31 (1-0)
Utah 44 UCLA 6 (1-1)
California 42 Louisiana Tech 12 (2-1)
Stanford 37 San Jose State 0 (3-1)
Oregon State 61 Idaho State 10 (4-1)*
Oregon 52 Fresno State 21 (5-1)
Ohio State 33 Washington 14 (5-2)
Washington State 45 Idaho 28 (6-2)
New Mexico 29 Arizona 17 (6-3)
Arizona State 34 San Diego State 13 (7-3)

SEC
Florida 59 Tennessee 20 (1-1)
Georgia 45 Western Carolina 16 (2-1)*
LSU 44 Middle Tennessee State 0 (3-1)
Mississippi State 19 Auburn 14 (4-2)
Vanderbilt 31 Mississippi 17 (5-3)
Kentucky 40 Louisville 34 (6-3)
Alabama 41 Arkansas 38 (7-4)
South Carolina 38 South Carolina State 3 (8-4)*

The Conference Yo of the Week
I'm finally giving this award to the SEC, one week after ranting about their being over-hyped again this season. Sure, Georgia and South Carolina faced Division I-AA opponents. LSU shut-out another below average team. But, outside of those games, the SEC put together some either very impressive performances or some extremely competitive and exciting ball games. I hadn't hopped on the Florida bandwagon until this past weekend when they blew out their bitter rival, Tennessee, 59-20. I can't remember a Gator/Volunteer game being that lopsided. Vanderbilt and Mississippi were within a score of each other most of the way through, until Vandy scored to win by 14. The other three games were spectacular, to say the least. Arkansas was down 21-0 at one point against Alabama in Tuscaloosa and scored 38 of the next 51 points to lead 38-34 late in the contest and with eight seconds left on the clock, Alabama ended Houston Nutt's hopes of fulfilling the amazing comeback with a touchdown to seal it for the Tide at 41-38. Auburn appeared to finally get their head out of the sand when they took a 14-13 lead late against Mississippi State and the Tigers' defense had stepped up since their early game struggles. But, Slyvester Croom had other ideas and his Bulldogs came back in the final couple minutes to score the go-ahead and eventual winning touchdown, 19-14. Auburn had an opportunity in the final few seconds, as they were inside the red zone, but Brandon Cox, the human sloth, failed to convert and all MSU had to do was take a knee to improve to 2-1 on the young season. Finally, Kentucky and Louisville squared off, with the Cardinals being the favorite against their in-state rival. This game had more runs than a Duke/Carolina showdown in the ACC Tournament, until Kentucky finally saw their club with more points than the other as the clock read 0:00, 40-34, in what was expected to be a wild shoot-out. The conference went 8-4 on the week, including a huge win against a favored Big East power and three other solid conference battles.

The Conference Yo No of the Week
As I don't want to be too heavily involved in fractions at the end of the season when I tally all the numbers, I decided to stick with two conferences this weekend (the Big East got lucky), the Big Ten and Big XII. While Michigan finally looked alive against the Fightless Irish in their 38-0 blowout win, Michigan State found a way to win against Pittsburgh, 17-13, and Ohio State looked especially impressive in the second half of their win against Washington, as a whole, the Big Ten again looked anything but like a major conference. The Citadel was locked with top ten Wisconsin at the half and accounted for 31 total points against the Badgers. Iowa lost to Iowa State, a club that had come into the game 0-2, with a 9-point loss to Kent State and an 11-point loss to I-AA Northern Iowa. Minnesota allowed 35-first half points to Florida Atlantic...not Florida, not Florida State, not even South Florida, but Florida Atlantic, in their 42-39 loss to Mr. Schnellenberger. Finally, the worst loss of the three has to be Northwestern's 20-14 defeat to Duke, yes, Duke. The Blue Devils came into the game losers of 22 straight and thanks to the Wildcats, the streak stopped right there.

Unlike the Big Ten, the Big XII didn't have any impressive wins over the weekend. Baylor just snuck by I-AA Texas State by the score of 34-27. Kansas State pulled out a card from the Bill Snyder playbook and faced I-AA Missouri State in the Wildcats' rout. Kansas beat up on the formerly good Toledo Rockets. Oklahoma did likewise to Utah State, who has only been competitive in basketball. Missouri beat Western Michigan, A&M defeated Louisiana-Monroe, and Texas Tech beat Rice. The most surprising victory for the Big XII? Iowa State's 15-13 win over Iowa. Texas just snuck by Central Florida 35-32. Nebraska got pounded by #1 USC 49-31 (wasn't that close), Colorado got beat at home by Florida State 16-6, and Oklahoma State was throttled by Troy 41-23 (again, wasn't that close).

For just one weekend, the ACC didn't appear to be the worst major conference in football. They have the Big Ten, Big XII, and even Big East this past weekend to thank.

Game of the Week
5. Virginia 22 North Carolina 20 - Virginia kept having to settle for three in the early going, as they led the Tar Heels 16-0, but not slamming the door shut when they had the chance almost came back to bite the Cavaliers, as UNC closed the game to 16-14 and had a chance to tie the game late after a score, but failed on the two-point conversion. It was exciting to see Al Groh and Butch Davis, former NFL coaches, face off for the first time with their respective schools. Groh might want to enjoy the victory while it lasts, because his Cavs have been doing anything but moving forward the past few years and with how Butch Davis can recruit, Carolina will probably do what UVA has been wanting to do under Al Groh.

4. Michigan State 17 Pittsburgh 13 - While not the style of game I had expected, it was a fun and competitive one nonetheless. Michigan State scored 83 points in their first two contests (41.5 average) and Pitt had averaged 30.5 points. The two teams were averaging to score 72 points a game between them and due to that, I was not expecting the two clubs to combine for just thirty. But, due to that fact, it was close throughout. Every play carried a certain level of suspense with it until the clock struck triple zeroes after Pitt threw the ball up for grabs near the end zone.

3. Mississippi State 19 Auburn 14 - One has to love Game Plan for battles like this one. While they may not look good on paper, one never knows when an upset looms. As has been the case in Auburn's first three games, after they have gotten behind, I've (and many others probably) been awaiting their offense to awaken and for them to come back and win. They did so against Kansas State in their opener, but not so against South Florida or Mississippi State. The Bulldogs led early until Auburn took a 14-13 lead in the second half. At this point, MSU's offense had gone cold, with their starting quarterback, Hennig, out with a finger injury. At that point in the game, most probably thought that the Bulldogs put up a good fight, but that it was as good as over. Not so fast! They had one more drive in them, and took the lead 19-14 late in the 4th quarter. Auburn had one final chance, but after easily cruising down inside the red zone, the drive stalled and MSU came away with a 19-14 victory.

2. Kentucky 40 Louisville 34 - After Louisville come back from 13-0 and 19-7 down to take a 21-19 lead at halftime, it was back and forth from there on. Kentucky struck at about the five minute mark of the third quarter on a lengthy 11 play, 78 yard drive to take a 26-21 lead, but Louisville only needed a few seconds to regain that lead, as Trent Guy ran back a kickoff 100 yards to give his Cardinals a 28-26 lead. Kentucky quarterback Andre Woodson threw an early 4th quarter touchdown to give his Wildcats a 33-28 lead. Late in the 4th quarter, after a 12 play, 83 yard drive, Louisville's Anthony Allen ran the ball for a go-ahead and potential winning touchdown. The two-point conversion failed, but Louisville still led by a point, 34-33 with 1:45 left on the clock. Even that is too much time when combining Kentucky's potent offense with Louisville's anything but stingy defense, right? That's correct, as with 28 seconds left, Andre Woodson hooked up on a 57 yard touchdown pass with Steve Johnson to put Kentucky up for good at 40-34. This game may not have been for the Marvin Lewis' of the world, but it was about as entertaining as they got on Saturday.

1. Alabama 41 Arkansas 38 - Early on, this appeared likely to be headed toward the biggest disappointments of the week category as opposed to games of the week, as Alabama led 21-0 at one point. But Arkansas went on to score 38 of the next 51 points to take a 38-34 lead late in the game. But, with eight seconds to go, John Parker Wilson threw a 4-yard game-winning touchdown pass to Matt Caddell to vault Alabama to a 41-38 victory and a 3-0 start.

Biggest Disappointment of the Week
5. USC 49 Nebraska 31 - The Game of the Week? In Lincoln? Cool temperatures? Chance of showers? Revenge on the mind of the Huskers for last year's loss? A chance for Callahan and his team to prove themselves on national television? Eh... While Nebraska hung tough for about a quarter and a half, USC decided to stop slacking and went on to score the next 35 points and 42 of the next 49. It became mighty cool for the hometown Huskers and their fans as opposed to those attending from California.

4. Michigan 38 Notre Dame 0 - Two highly reputable 0-2 teams should make for a decent contest, right? Lou? Not quite. In fact, if Michigan had played their starters a bit longer, that score would look even uglier. The Wolverines led 31-0 at the half and held Notre Dame to 73 total yards, including -6 on the ground.

3. Troy 41 Oklahoma State 23 - On this night, it appeared that Troy was the Big XII favorite and Oklahoma State was a Sun Belt team just looking for some ESPN primetime exposure. Troy led 41-10 late in the game before OSU scored two touchdowns on the Trojans' scrubs. That's right, OSU's starters scored two touchdowns at the end against Troy's second teamers. While the score may look bad to OSU fans and to those who didn't watch the game, it wasn't even that close.

2. Ohio State 33 Washington 14 - Washington had won their first two games of the season by a combined 66-22 against Syracuse and Boise State, ending the Broncos winning streak. The Huskies kept their fans pumped through about halftime, as they led 7-3 at the break, but couldn't keep their fans in the game much longer than that, as Ohio State scored 30 second half points to Washington's 7. While Ohio State's young offense still has a lot to prove, their defense is looking stout, to say the least.

1. Florida 59 Tennessee 20 - When's the last time someone could look you in the eye with a straight face and tell you that Florida/Tennessee beat the other by four touchdowns? Video games are not included. 59-20? Dating back to last year, Tennessee has lost 3 of their last 4, including their defense allowing 45 points to California and 59 to Florida in the early going this season. While amazingly, for how much they lost in the off-season, Florida doesn't appear to have slowed down much, the Volunteers could be in some serious trouble, especially on the defensive side of the ball.

Kudos
I've already mentioned this story, but kudos this week to Duke. The Blue Devils had lost a nation-leading 22 consecutive games until they finally won this Saturday, beating Northwestern by the final score of 20 to 14. Congrats to the Dukies. It may be the one and only time I say those two words in the same sentence this year (sarcasm not included)!

No Kudos
This goes to the "Games of the Week". The most hyped game of the first three weeks has been anything but...average, let alone good. In Week 1, California put up 45 points in their 45-31 victory over Tennessee and honestly, the game wasn't even that close. It was 45-24 until the 'Vols added a late touchdown. In Week 2, things would get even worse, as LSU stomped on Virginia Tech 48-7 in Baton Rouge. This past weekend, USC came to Lincoln and were up 49-17 until they told their scrubs to go in the prevent formation and the Cornhuskers were able to add two late scores. There have been plenty of quality games so far this season, but none of those include the "Games of the Week," unfortunately. Hopefully that trend comes to a halt this weekend.

Player of the Week
This goes to Michigan tailback Mike Hart. Right now, I think most teams could probably guarantee a victory over the Irish and pull through, but most teams weren't in Michigan's position. In fact, no other team in the country was in the situation the Wolverines had gotten themselves. Michigan was a pre-season favorite, along with USC and LSU, to potentially goto the National Championship game. Because of that, most "experts" felt U of M would have no problems winning the Big Ten. After two consecutive losses to start the season, one to I-AA Appalachian State, becoming the first ranked team to ever get beaten by a I-AA squad and the other a 39-7 home stomp-down at the hands of Oregon, many Michigan fans were calling it the beginning of the end, to the season and to head coach Lloyd Carr. For the third consecutive week, Michigan was to play at The Big House against another hungry team, 0-2 Notre Dame, without their starting quarterback, Chad Henne, and Mike Hart guaranteed a victory. Just as I suspected, the man delivered. He carried the ball 35 times for 187 yards (5.3 ypc) and 2 touchdowns. He also caught 2 passes for 14 yards. Overall, he accounted for 201 of Michigan's 379 yards of offense (53.0%). He showed leadership and determination and it'll be interesting to see how far this carries into the season. After all, the two losses are to non-conference opponents, so as of right now, while the Wolverines have no chance at winning the National Championship, Michigan has as much of a chance at winning the Big Ten title as any other team.

Surprise of the Week
Iowa State's win over Iowa was surprising. Duke actually winning a game was even more surprising. But, the most surprising game of the week had to be Utah's 44-6 rout of UCLA. How did this happen? It's pretty simple. While both teams were fairly equal in terms of total yardage, first downs, and 3rd and 4th down conversions, UCLA turned the ball over 5 times, including 2 lost fumbles and 3 interceptions compared to Utah's one turnover. They also committed 10 penalties for 66 yards compared to Utah's 4 for 30. Utah also held the Bruins to 83 yards rushing on 31 carries (2.7 ypc). I don't care how good or talented a team may be, with those numbers, it'll be difficult to win any game. Utah played disciplined and UCLA played sloppy. It's as simple as that.

Nebraska Game (from an unbiased perspective)
Thanks to my buddy Matt, I had the pleasure of seeing this game up close and in person. I use the term "pleasure" rather cautiously, because while the first quarter and a half were tightly contested, the next quarter and a half to two quarters were nothing but pleasurable for the average football fan or especially for the Nebraska fan.

Both teams had a lot to prove going into this game. Nebraska was 1-9 all time versus #1 teams and were 0-5 under Bill Callahan against Top Ten teams. After USC's 28-10 victory over the Huskers last year at the Coliseum and with the key losses of wideouts Dwayne Jarrett and Steve Smith, who lit up the Husker secondary a year ago, Nebraska felt now was as good a time as any to upset Pete Carroll's Trojans. They even had former Pac-10 quarterback, Sam Keller, at the helm, who, while struggling against USC in the past, has experience against them. On the other side, USC had lost some first place votes to LSU, after the Tigers blew past then #9 ranked Virginia Tech 48-7 two Saturdays ago. Oklahoma looked very impressive that same weekend, after annihilating Miami (Florida) 51-13, and Florida laid the wood to Tennessee 59-20 earlier in the afternoon this past Saturday. USC was just 1-0 going into the game with that one victory coming against the Idaho Vandals. So, both teams had something to prove on Saturday night.

It was difficult to evaluate either team after their first three games of the season. Nebraska looked very impressive in their home opener against Nevada, in their 52-10 win over the Wolfpack, but stumbled a bit against Wake Forest the week after, finding a way to beat the Demon Deacons 20-17. Many believed the latter of the two games to have been partly due to Nebraska looking past Wake to USC. USC, meanwhile, had only played one game, a 38-10 victory over Idaho. They were off in Week 2. From a competition standpoint, Nebraska seemed better prepared, but from a rest standpoint, USC held the edge. Evidently, in this case at least, rest beats competition.

Things didn't look good from the outset for Nebraska. Following a great punt, pinning USC down to the 4-yard line for their opening drive with all the momentum on the Huskers' side, USC only needed four plays to score a touchdown on a 96-yard drive. But, through a fairly efficient short passing game, Sam Keller led Nebraska to 10 consecutive points and it appeared Nebraska may go into the half with a 10-7 lead. That was until USC revved their engines and decided to go back to what worked in their opening possession - running the football. The Trojans scored two touchdowns before the break to take a 21-10 lead at the half. It didn't get any better for Nebraska in the second half, as Sam Keller was picked off twice in the Huskers' opening two possessions of the second half and USC took full advantage of those opportunities to take a 35-10 lead. They'd put the ball into the end zone again before Nebraska finally did something of their own and when all was said and done, USC led 49-17 over Nebraska in the 4th quarter. This was until USC put their second team defense in and played prevent, which allowed two late touchdown drives by Nebraska to close the gap somewhat, 49-31 and that was the final. USC's first team 49 Nebraska's first team 17, USC's second team 0 Nebraska's first team 14.

USC ran the ball 38 times for 313 yards, 8.2 yards per carry, which is a record average yards per carry against Nebraska. Tailback Stafon Jackson led the charge, carrying the ball 11 times for 144 yards (13.1 ypc) and 1 touchdown. C.J. Cable carried it 6 more times for 71 yards (17.3 ypc). Finally, Stanley Havili ran the ball twice for 52 yards (26.0 ypc) and 1 touchdown. Between these three tailbacks, USC accounted for 19 carries and 267 yards (14.1 ypc). Ouch! Those are video game numbers right there! USC's pass game wasn't nearly as efficient, but what's that saying? That's like complaining about '95 Nebraska's pass game on a typical afternoon.

Nebraska wasn't nearly as productive on the ground, rushing for only 31 yards in the game and 27 of those coming after USC put in their scrubs. Starter Marlon Lucky ran the ball 17 times for 33 yards (1.9 ypc) and this includes a 13-yard rush against the second team defense of USC at the tail-end of the game. Without that one rush, he ran the ball 16 times for 20 yards, just slightly over one yard per carry. Back-up Cody Glenn didn't fare much better, as he ran the ball 8 times for 20 yards (2.5 ypc). One could point to Sam Keller's 389 passing yards as a positive, but 169 of those made their presence known when the game was already decided. To his credit, though, he did spread the ball out to nine different receivers in the game, the leader of which was Maurice Purify, who caught 7 balls for 80 yards (11.4 ypr).

With the loss, Nebraska is now 1-10 all-time against #1 ranked teams and they are 0-6 against Top Ten teams under Bill Callahan.

What can be determined after this rather embarrassing loss at home? Well, firstly, Nebraska's front seven needs to improve. They need to apply more pressure on the quarterback, need to plug up holes, and need to tackle better. As scary as it may sound, NU's secondary has been the steadiest part of their defense this year thus far. But, that won't matter much if the front seven doesn't apply more pressure to the quarterback and doesn't find a way of plugging up holes the offensive line's attempt to spread open for their tailbacks. Even with their true freshman at center, starting the first game of his career, USC spread one enormous hole after another for their halfbacks. The holes were so large that Zac Taylor could easily have run for 100 yards if he was in USC's backfield on Saturday night.

Nebraska's offense remains a bit of a mystery to me. Without the two late touchdowns against USC's scrubs, NU's offense would have scored 37 points in their previous two games after eclipsing the 50-mark in their opener against Nevada. The offense just hasn't appeared to be very balanced or in sync yet. The running game was superb against the Wolfpack, but has been anything but in the previous two games. The passing game has been decent at times during games, but has yet to be consistently good throughout any of the three games thus far. Maurice Purify appeared to be much less rusty against USC in his second start of the season, so that's very good news for Huskers' fans, but the offense needs to play more consistently and more cohesively, especially after their two games coming up, against Ball State and Iowa State. They have a very tough stretch after that.

While this was not one of the higher moments in Nebraska football history, the Huskers have two nice rebound games before they head into a tough Big XII stretch-run. Ball State and Iowa State are their next two opponents and with two wins, NU should be 4-1 heading into their game against Missouri. While there are some things Nebraska fans can be hopeful about, after Saturday's pounding, one can't help but be more worrisome than hopeful.

Solich Update
Frank Solich's Ohio Bobcats hung tough with Virginia Tech in Blacksburg on Saturday, as they were tied 7-7 with the Hokies midway in the third quarter. But after the initial 7-0 lead over Va Tech, the Hokies scored the final 28 points in the game, including 21 in the last quarter and a half of play to win 28-7. It marked the first loss for Solich and his boys on the young season. They have yet to play a MAC game, but are 2-1 overall.

Gill Update
As I suspected, Buffalo Bulls' head coach Turner Gill should have relished the 42-7 victory over Temple last week for all it was worth, because they faced JoPa's Nittany Lions this past Saturday and got beat pretty soundly, before they put up some points on PSU's scrubs in the fourth. The game was 38-3 fairly late in the game, before Buffalo outscored PSU's cheerleaders 21-7 to fall 45-24. Even with the loss, the Bulls remain unbeaten (for now) in the MAC at 1-0 and are 1-2 overall, with losses to Rutgers and Penn State.

Random Note of the Week
For the third consecutive week, former Notre Dame head coach and current ESPN analyst (sort of), Lou Holtz, picked his beloved Irish to win. On the season, Holtz is 0-3 in predicting Notre Dame victories, as they've been trounced 33-3 by Georgia Tech, 31-10 by Penn State, and 38-0 by Michigan (31-0 at halftime). All-in-all, Notre Dame has been outscored 102-13 and have yet to score an offensive touchdown. They also have accumulated -14 yards on the ground through three games, including -6 on Saturday against the Wolverines. As Holtz doesn't seem to know how to pick against his Irish, he may be in for a rough ride, as the Irish's next five games consist of: Michigan State, at Purdue, at UCLA, Boston College, and USC. They finish with Navy, Air Force, Duke and at Stanford.

Predictions
Thursday
Texas A&M at Miami (Florida): Neither club has a true quality win yet, so I'm curious to see how this game plays out. For how awful the ACC has looked thus far, I'm going to give the edge to A&M.
Texas A&M 28 Miami (Florida) 17

Western Kentucky at Middle Tennessee: Western Kentucky was welcomed to Division I-A in their opening game by defending National Champion Florida with a 49-3 whooping. Since then, they've beaten up on two Division I-AA opponents. It's back to I-A and back to losing for the Hilltoppers. Middle Tennessee has to be thanking their lucky stars to have the honor of playing Western Kentucky after having to face Louisville and LSU in successive weeks.
Middle Tennessee 31 Western Kentucky 17

Friday
Oklahoma at Tulsa: This is OU's toughest road test thus far! In fact, I think it may be their first road test! Tulsa is no club to sleep on, as they're 2-0 following a big 55-47 defensive slugfest win over BYU last week. Even with their usually potent offense, it won't be enough to topple OU. Sooners should win fairly comfortably on Friday.
Oklahoma 49 Tulsa 24

Saturday
North Carolina at South Florida: USF had a much deserved week off after their 26-23 overtime win at Auburn. The 2-0 Bulls now face the young and up-start Tar Heels, who are coming off a very tough 22-20 loss to Virginia. With the game at home and Matt Groethe at the helm to disrupt the young Tar Heels' defense, I look for the Bulls to improve to 3-0 on the season with a win at home.
South Florida 31 North Carolina 21

Illinois at Indiana: I never thought I'd say this, but this is actually a pretty big early season game. Illinois came a late touchdown within coming back and defeating Missouri in their opener. Since then, they've gone 2-0, including a drubbing of Syracuse this past weekend. Indiana has started the year 3-0, by beating three relatively average to below average non-conference opponents. The winner will start the year 1-0 in conference play, at either 3-1 or 4-0, and off to a great start on a potential bowl run. With how the game ended last year on a last second field goal by the Hoosiers and how efficient Juice Williams has been at quarterback for the Illini, I look for Illinois to get some revenge and start the year 1-0 in Big Ten play and 3-1 overall.
Illinois 27 Indiana 21

Syracuse at Louisville: What could be a better rebound game for the Louisville Cardinals, who are coming off a 40-34 defeat at the hands of their inner-state rival, Kentucky, than to play a home game against Big East foe Syracuse? An 0-3 club who has been outscored 118-32 against the likes of Washington, Iowa, and Illinois? Louisville wins big.
Louisville 70 Syracuse 21

Clemson at North Carolina State: The 3-0 Clemson Tigers should have no problem moving to 4-0 and 2-0 in the ACC Conference with a win against the Wolfpack. NC State won their first game a week ago by defeating I-AA Wofford 38-17. With that, a 2-point loss to Central Florida, and a 20-point loss to Boston College, the 'Pack's resume' isn't impressing me enough to take them in the upset over Tommy Bowden's club.
Clemson 31 North Carolina State 17

Temple at Bowling Green: The Owls were oh so close to winning a game this past weekend, falling on the short-end of a 22-17 affair with Connecticut. They should've cashed in when they had a chance. This is a winnable game for Temple, but I don't see them putting together back-to-back solid road efforts. One was a tall task as it is.
Bowling Green 34 Temple 17

Georgia Tech at Virginia: For how poorly Al Groh's Cavaliers played in their opener, losing 23-3 to Wyoming and for how solid Georgia Tech looked against Notre Dame and of course, I-AA Samford, the two clubs are looking in completely different directions right now and the direct opposite from where it would've appeared in Week 1. Following two consecutive ACC wins, UVA is 2-1, unbeaten in conference at 2-0, and have a golden opportunity to make that 3-0 with a home win on Saturday. The Yellow Jackets, meanwhile, are coming off a 24-10 loss to Boston College which makes them 0-1 in conference play, in desperate need of a conference victory this weekend to even their record at 1-1, as opposed to 0-2 if they fall to the Cavs. While UVA has won two consecutive conference battles, they were against Duke and North Carolina, arguably the two worst teams in the conference and by a combined score of 46-33 (average of 23-16.5). Tech's rambling wreck defense should prove to be too much for UVA's inconsistent offense.
Georgia Tech 27 Virginia 13

East Carolina at West Virginia: West Virginia's spread offense was stifled last year against the Pirates. The Mountaineers won, but ECU gave them all they could handle. Look for more of the same in the first half of play, but for WVU to pull away in the third quarter with the insanely quick backfield of Pat White, Steve Slaton, and new freshman phenom Noah Devine.
West Virginia 31 East Carolina 17

Kent State at Akron: Just solely based upon the Zips tough play against Ohio State and semi-tough play against unbeaten Indiana, I'm going to give them the home edge in this one.
Akron 31 Kent State 24

Florida at Mississippi: One shouldn't forget how close Ole Miss was to defeating the Gators last year in the swamp. Following a dominating nationally televised performance against rival Tennessee this past Saturday, Florida is due for a let-down. While I can't bring it in me to pick the Rebels in the upset, I'm going to say that it'll be closer than the "experts" think.
Florida 24 Mississippi 13

Ball State at Nebraska: Learning how to run again - that should be Nebraska's motto this weekend, following their 31 rushing yards against USC (27 of those in scrub time). With Marlon Lucky wanting to redeem himself, I think NU will do just that. While I think NU should win fairly handily, they can't let the hangover from the USC defeat carry on into this upcoming Saturday. Ball State is within two points of being a perfect 3-0, including an overtime win over Navy this past weekend and let's not forget their near upset over Michigan last year.
Nebraska 35 Ball State 10

Army at Boston College: Army is looking worse than usual. BC could be due for a potential let-down week following their huge conference win in Atlanta against Georgia Tech. But, who are we kidding? It's Army! Boston College should roll past the Black Knights to 4-0 on the season.
Boston College 42 Army 6

Duke at Navy: One team is coming into the game with a one-game winning streak and the other lost last week's game. But, the team that won and lost last week probably aren't the same team's you'd expect. The reason I refer to the one game being a "streak" is the fact Duke won last week, beating Northwestern, to end their nation-leading 22-game losing skid. Another may be started this weekend, as Navy should even their record at 2-2 with a win over the Blue Devils.
Navy 31 Duke 14

Wyoming at Ohio: Ohio played Virginia Tech tough for 2 1/2 quarters before the Hokies went on their 21-0 run to end the game. But, even then, the Bobcats are 2-1 and appear to be on their way to another year of contention in the MAC. Wyoming will be a tough opponent, but with the game at home, I'm picking the Bobcats.
Ohio 24 Wyoming 21

Air Force at BYU: Air Force has been winning the close games thus far and BYU has done the opposite, losing those tightly-contested games. When these two teams get together, especially with the solid start the Falcons are off to this year, I expect the bouts to be close. I look for the two trends to continue.
Air Force 31 BYU 28

Miami (Ohio) at Colorado: After losing two straight tough non-conference games to Arizona State and Florida State, Colorado has a great opportunity to finish their fairly tough non-conference schedule (also included a win against Colorado State) at an even 2-2. With their fourth and final game of the non-conference slate being one against Miami (Ohio) in Boulder, I have to believe Dan Hawkins will make the most of that opportunity and head into Big XII play with an even record.
Colorado 27 Miami (Ohio) 10

Michigan State at Notre Dame: This just in... Lou Holtz will probably pick the Irish at home for their first victory of the season. This just in... Not going to happen. For whatever reason, Michigan State has had the Irish's number over the past few years and that even includes Notre Dame's good teams. This year's club has a total of 13 points in three games (4.3 ppg) and -14 yards rushing (-4.7 ypg). Meanwhile, they've allowed 102 points (34.0 ppg). That's right, they're not only 0-3, but are getting outscored by approximately 30 points an outing and are failing to rush for positive yards. Michigan State, meanwhile, is 3-0 and from what I've seen thus far, should be able to improve to 4-0 with a win in South Bend.
Michigan State 28 Notre Dame 10

South Carolina at LSU: Mississippi State (2-1), Virginia Tech (2-1), Middle Tennessee State (0-3), and now South Carolina (3-0). LSU's opponents have a 4-5 record going into this game and 7-5 including the Gamecocks. How have they fared thus far? 45-0 over Mississippi State, 48-7 over Virginia Tech, and 44-0 over Middle Tennessee State. They have outscored their 4-5 opposition by the score of 137-7 (average of 45.7 - 2.3). For how dominant their defense appears to be under the tutelage of Beau Pelini, it's hard for me to see anybody beating the Tigers right now, especially in Baton Rouge. That includes you, Spurrier!
LSU 31 South Carolina 10

Penn State at Michigan: How many consecutive home games is Michigan playing? Geesh. Appalachian State, Oregon, Notre Dame, and now Penn State. I keep going back and forth about this one (as I do with so many things...), but I have a gut feeling that Michigan is rejuvenated and with this game at home, senior Mike Hart won't let the Wolverines lose three out of four home games to start the season.
Michigan 24 Penn State 21

Maryland at Wake Forest: Wake Forest finally won a game! They beat Army 31-10 this past weekend to improve to 1-2. Their regular starting quarterback, Skinner, is hoping to be back in the line-up this weekend, but that's not a certainty yet. Either way, I like the Deacons, with their seemingly non-stop motion on offense, to win the game at home and even their record at 2-2.
Wake Forest 27 Maryland 24

Northwestern at Ohio State: Ohio State's offense finally woke up from a deep slumber in the second half against Washington this past Saturday, scoring 30 points (33 total). Northwestern became victim (punchline of a joke) of Duke, ending the Blue Devil's 22-losing streak. The Buckeyes should have no problem with THE team that ended Duke's skid.
Ohio State 34 Northwestern 3

Texas Tech at Oklahoma State: If quarterback Bobby Reid starts for the Cowboys, then I think they have a legitimate shot to win this game, but that's no guarantee and regardless of who plays quarterback, Texas Tech should have no problems putting up points in the bunches against OSU's defense.
Texas Tech 45 Oklahoma State 27

Memphis at Central Florida: The only way I can see the Golden Knights losing this one is if they're not focused, due to their near upset win over Texas last weekend. But, I don't see George O'Leary allowing for that to happen, especially at home. UCF wins to improve to 2-1 on the season.
Central Florida 38 Memphis 24

Colorado State at Houston: With a week off to prepare and two very tough losses behind them (31-28 in overtime to Colorado and 34-28 to Cal), I look for Sonny Lubbick and his CSU Rams to win a hard-fought battle in Houston.
Colorado State 34 Houston 31

Northern Illinois at Idaho: Northern Illinois likes to lose the close games. They fell by 13 points to Iowa in Week 1, 3 points to Southern Illinois, and then 2 points to Eastern Michigan. With this game being away and Idaho having just racked up 28 points against Washington State this past Saturday, I look for the Huskies to lose yet another close one.
Idaho 24 Northern Illinois 21

Kentucky at Arkansas: This is a huge game for both clubs. Kentucky is coming off a gi-normous (a word in my book) win over in-state rival Louisville and Arkansas fell 8 seconds short of beating Alabama in what had been an amazing comeback. With a let-down possible for the Wildcats, especially on the road and Arkansas needing to bounce back at home, I look for the 'Hogs to even their SEC record at 1-1 with a big win against up-start Kentucky.Arkansas 38 Kentucky 28

Arizona at California: Cal's offense is, for lack of a better word, fast and Arizona's defense isn't, to be kind, the Desert Storm of the '90s. Jeff Tedford can't take any conference opponent for granted, but DeSean Jackson and company won't allow for that to happen.
California 45 Arizona 17

Baylor at Buffalo: Baylor has beaten Rice and I-AA Texas State, only beating them this past weekend 34-27. Their loss was a shut-out at the hands of TCU. Buffalo has fallen to tough potential BCS teams in Rutgers and Penn State and blew-out Temple 42-7. With the game at home and Baylor being, well, Baylor, I look for the Bulls to even their overall record at 2-2 with a big win over a Big XII opponent.
Buffalo 31 Baylor 28

New Mexico State at Auburn: I said last week that with how Auburn has been playing over the past year, they could potential lose any and every SEC game they played this year. What happened? They fell to 1-2 with a 19-14 loss to Mississippi State. They're lucky to have that one victory, as they could've very well lost to Kansas State in their 23-13 opening win. While it's hard for me to believe Hal Mumme's Aggies will prove to be much of a challenge to the Tigers, I wouldn't completely rule them out. Mumme was, of course, an SEC coach (Kentucky) before he headed west and if Mumme is known for one thing, it's making defenses feel a bit uneasy with his array of tricks. Either way, I just have to pick Auburn. Like Michigan, they couldn't lose three straight in general, let alone at home, right? We'll see...
Auburn 34 New Mexico State 17

Connecticut at Pittsburgh: After their tough 17-13 loss in East Lansing last weekend to Michigan State and the mediocre first couple years under his helm, Dave Wanstedt and his Panthers need this win to start the year on the right foot in conference play and to improve their bowl eligibility chances. If they don't make a bowl again this year, the third-year coach may be in trouble. Fortunately for him, a game at home against UConn (3-0, against Duke, Maine, and Temple) should prove to be no problem.
Pittsburgh 28 Connecticut 13

Florida Atlantic at North Texas: Howard Schnellenberger's kids are 2-1, can you believe it? Florida Atlantic? Well, it's true, following their 42-39 win against Minnesota (scored 35 points in the first half). North Texas had a week off to prepare for Schnelly's bunch, but even that extra week won't do them much good, as FAU improves to 3-1 on the season.
Florida Atlantic 35 North Texas 21

Rice at Texas: Not even Texas can sleepwalk their way to a loss against Rice in Austin and for how they've played their past 7 games, that's saying something.
Texas 56 Rice 7

Troy at Louisiana-Lafayette: How about them Trojans? Following their 41-23 thrashing of Oklahoma State (41-10 until they put their scrubs in!) on Friday night, Troy will face their first conference opponent of the season. They just better not have a let-down, following a tough three-game stretch against the likes of Arkansas (lost 46-26), Florida (lost 59-31), and Oklahoma State (won 41-23). If they stay focused, they should have no problem with the Rajun' Cajuns.
Troy 45 Louisiana-Lafayette 21

Florida International at Kansas: The Jayhawks have been scoring a multitude of points in their first three games. I can't see that stopping anytime soon, especially against a team who has lost their last 15 games at home in Lawrence.
Kansas 63 Florida International 6

Arkansas State at Tennessee: The 'Vols can't take Arkansas State for granted as Texas did in Week 1, the Longhorns outlasting ASU 21-13. This could be an easy week for Tennessee to play lackadaisically, following their 59-20 beat-down at the hands of rival Florida. I don't believe Phil Fulmer, Erik "Don't Call Me Danny" Ainge and company will allow that to ensue, however. 'Vols win at home.
Tennessee 38 Arkansas State 17

Iowa State at Toledo: At least Iowa State is consistent offensively. The now 1-2 Suckclones have scored 14, 13, and 15 points in their three outings thus far. If they keep that up, I have a hard time seeing them win a game in Toledo, a school who has a rep for scoring a few points (more than 15 in a game).
Toledo 27 Iowa State 20

Marshall at Cincinnati: That hard-fought West Virginia loss proved to be quite costly to the Thundering Herd, as they fell to I-AA New Hampshire this past weekend 45-33. Things won't be looking any better against the seemingly new and improved 3-0 (now 4-0) Bearcats of Cincinnati.
Cincinnati 49 Marshall 14

Georgia at Alabama: I've picked against the Tide in Tuscaloosa each of the last two weeks, in their 24-10 win against Vanderbilt and then their 41-38 last second win over the Razorbacks of Arkansas. I'm not going to do it again. In Tuscaloosa, this time against the 'Dawgs, I'm going with the Tide. (Watch, they lose...)
Alabama 24 Georgia 17

Washington State at USC: If this game were played in Pullman, I'd ponder about taking Wazzoo in the upset, after an emotional Game of the Week blow-out of Nebraska in Lincoln. But, with the game at home, the best I can see from the Cougars is making it a close game until about halftime. The second half will be the Trojans'.
USC 52 Washington State 24

Iowa at Wisconsin: Here's one game I'd keep my eye on. I'd pick Iowa if the game were played in Iowa City, as Hawkeyes' head coach, Kirk Ferentz, had to be all over his team this week in practice following their embarrassing 15-13 loss to in-state rival Iowa State. Wisconsin has looked anything but impressive thus far, beating a 2-win team from a year ago, UNLV, by 7 points and giving up 31 points to I-AA The Citadel in the Badgers' 45-31 win this past weekend. But, with the game at home, I'm hard-pressed to go against the Bah-gers in this one. But, as has been the trend so far this year, the win won't be pretty.
Wisconsin 24 Iowa 14

San Jose State at Utah State: Two 0-3 schools lock horns in Week 4 of the season. San Jose State, a bowl team from a year ago, is off to a porous start and Utah State is off to their typical one. The Spartans' Dick Tomey should get his club ready to go for this one, or else Tomey could be in for a very long season as head coach of SJSU.
San Jose State 31 Utah State 10

SMU at TCU: Where has TCU's offense gone? Following their 27-0 shutout of Baylor in Week 1, the Horned Frogs have scored 30 points in their two losses, while allowing 54 to Texas and Air Force. At home against 1-2 SMU, who appears to have anything but a stout defense, Gary Patterson's crew should be able to get back on track with a win to level their record at 2-2.
TCU 27 SMU 13

Purdue at Minnesota: Neither team has faced a tough opponent, yet Purdue is 3-0 and Minnesota is 1-2. The Gophers started the year by losing 32-31 in overtime to Bowling Green, before beating Miami (Ohio) 41-35 in triple overtime, and this past weekend, falling to Florida Atlantic by the final score of 42-39. They've allowed 109 points (36.3 ppg) to three mid-major schools with a combined record of 4-4. Purdue will give the Gophers' defensive coordinator even bigger headaches by the time this game is done.
Purdue 59 Minnesota 21

Oregon State at Arizona State: ASU has faced three average to below average teams to start the season. Even with the game in Tempe, I have to go with the better prepared Beavers over the Sundevils.
Oregon State 31 Arizona State 24

Oregon at Stanford: When Oregon quarterback Dennis Dixon is on, his Ducks are tough to beat. Well, as Houston, Michigan, and Fresno State can attest to, he's on and Stanford will find that out this Saturday.Oregon 38 Stanford 17

Utah at UNLV: What happened this past week in Salt Lake City, Utah? Was there something special in the air? Did Joseph Smith wave his magic wand upon the Ute football team? Utah went from an underachieving 0-2 football team, losing to Oregon State and Air Force, to defeating then 2-0 UCLA 44-6. That's not a typo, as I had first suspected when witnessing it on the scoreboard at Memorial Stadium. Unless they suffer a huge let-down, they should win handily in Vegas.
Utah 38 UNLV 10

Washington at UCLA: This is a big early season conference game for the two schools. After each starting the year 2-0, UW went into the half against Ohio State with a 7-3 lead, only to fall 33-14 and UCLA got pummeled by Utah 44-6. With the game at home, I like UCLA's defense to get back on track and for head coach Karl Dorrell's tough-mindedness to pay off in this game. A loss here could really set them back a ways, especially from a confidence standpoint.
UCLA 27 Washington 21

Inelligible Games
William & Mary at Virginia Tech
Illinois State at Missouri
North Dakota State at Central Michigan
Howard at Eastern Michigan
Portland State at San Diego State
Gardner-Webb at Mississippi State
Central Connecticut State at Western Michigan
Sacramento State at New Mexico
Southeastern Louisiana at Tulane
Texas Southern at UTEP
Charleston Southern at Hawaii

Week 3 Record: 33-17 (.660)
Overall Record: 75-25 (.750)

Inside the Numbers
At Memorial Stadium in Lincoln, Nebraska this past Saturday, featured on ABC as the Game of the Week, USC chalked up 313 yards on the ground to Nebraska's 31. For the game, USC averaged 8.2 yards per carry, which is the most ever against a Nebraska team. The Trojans had 316 yards before running it up the middle a few times toward the very end of the game with a couple 80-year old history professors. Of Nebraska's 31 yards on the ground, 27 of those came during scrub time, where the Trojans' second teamers were in the prevent formation. Never did I ever think I'd witness a team outrushing Nebraska at Memorial by close to 300 yards. Unbelievable!

Rant of the Week: Current Rankings
As many of you already know, I'm anti-preseason polls. Even if that's the case, I feel that pollsters needn't feel ashamed of fixing their mistakes on a weekly basis to get the polls right, or as right as they can be at that given time.

That brings me to the latest polls. Why in Zeus' spatula is Texas ranked #6 in the Coaches Poll and #7 in the AP and why is Wisconsin ranked #7 and #9 in those same polls? Texas defeated Sun Belt Arkansas State 21-13 in Week 1, fell asleep in the first half against TCU, before rolling in the second half to a 34-13 victory, and barely snuck by Central Florida 35-32 this past weekend.

Wisconsin's resume' is even worse, if that's possible. They received a tough battle from Washington State until about midway in the 3rd quarter, when they pulled away en rout to their 42-21 win over the Cougars. They were down to UNLV (2-10 from a year ago) in Week 2, until waking up in the 4th quarter to win 20-13. Finally, this past weekend, they were locked with I-AA Citadel at halftime 21-21, until pulling away in the second half, winning 45-31. That's right, they allowed 31 points to The Citadel.

So, how in the world are these two teams ranked in the top 10? Based on reputation alone? What about Oregon, who's currently ranked 13th in both polls? They have beaten Houston, Michigan, and Fresno State all by convincing margins. Houston is a usual bowl-bound club. Michigan was in contention for the National Championship a year ago and had hopes of the same this season. Fresno State is a giant killer and usual bowl contending team out of the WAC. Or what about Boston College, who's currently ranked at 12 and 14? They had to start the season with three conference games: Defending ACC Champion Wake Forest (won 38-28 after falling behind 14-0), Tom O'Brien's new club, North Carolina State (won 37-17), and ACC runner-up from a year ago, Georgia Tech in Atlanta (won 24-10). After Week 3 of the season, BC is 3-0 in ACC play, including wins against the ACC Champion and runner-up from a year ago.

If I'm ranking teams by their progressing resume's and how they've played thus far, there's no way in this lifetime or any other I'd have ranked Texas and/or Wisconsin in the Top 10 at this point in the season. If someone wants to rank them in the Top 20, then so be it, but there are plenty of other teams more deserving than the 'Horns and Badgers of being in the Top 10 and having an opportunity to play in the National Title game.

Top 120 Poll
Will debut following Week 5's games. I will use the same formula as last year to conduct the poll, which includes a team's winning percentage, their opponents' winning percentage, and their average margin of victory per game.