Random College Football Commentary

- I'm amazed by how good an offense can be and how terrible a defense can be. I'm referring, of course, to the Michigan Wolverines. Out of 120 Division I-A teams, Michigan ranks 12th in points scored, averaging 38.9 points per game, while simultaneously being ranked 105th in points allowed, giving up 33.9 a contest. After seeing the 67-65 final score of the game last weekend against Illinois, my mother said, "I didn't know it was basketball season already." Indeed it is. Indeed it is.

- If Oregon and Auburn run the tables (a big if), I wonder how many pundits will declare something like, "The first one to 80 wins" and what we wind up seeing is a fairly average 28-24 or 31-28 type of game. Nah, neither team excels on defense and they're both quite potent on offense. Well, if Cam Newton becomes ineligible, we'll have to wait and see how potent the Tigers' offense is, but we'll have to wait and see on that.

- Is it just me or does the quality of college football around the country seem to be inferior to previous years?

The Big Ten is very top heavy, with Ohio State, Wisconsin, Iowa and Michigan State, but other than that, they're fairly average. Penn State has a pretty solid defense, but have been anything but efficient on offense. Michigan can score against anyone, but a 5-man team compiled of 8-year olds could score against their defense. Northwestern knows how to play teams close, but I still don't see them as a 6-3 club (more like 5-4). Illinois has been a pleasant surprise and should only improve with a Freshman quarterback at the helm. Indiana and Purdue are average, to be kind. Minnesota is without question the conference doormat this year. Overall, the conference is decent, but I expected more this year.

The Big XII isn't nearly as strong as they have been the past few years, as Texas has gone from a National Championship Game to 4-5 and in danger of not being bowl eligible. Oklahoma has not looked dominant all year, despite their being ranked #1 in the initial B(C)S standings. Nebraska has looked very solid at times, but inconsistent, as was seen in their near loss to Iowa State last week. Missouri appeared to be a very good until they met up with Nebraska a couple weeks ago. There are several fairly good teams. To go along with the before-mentioned clubs (excluding Texas), Oklahoma State, Texas A&M and Texas Tech are all capable teams. Baylor and Kansas State have been pleasant surprises, but I'm still not completely sold on them. Iowa State can look like a doormat some weeks and can look like the North Champion others. They're a difficult team for me to grade. Finally, we have Colorado and Kansas, whom are, without a doubt, the two worst teams in conference. There are several pretty good to good clubs here, but none that I see as a worthy Top 5 or even Top 10 team, which has been the norm in the past several years (Texas and Oklahoma).

The Pac-10 is difficult to grade, as they play a round-robin. This results in only three non-conference games, as opposed to the ACC, Big Ten, Big XII and SEC, whom all play 4 and the Big East, whom plays 5 games out-of-conference. In any regard, like the Big Ten, the Pac-10 is strong up top, with Oregon, Stanford and Arizona, but they've run into parity from positions 4 to 9 in the conference, with: Oregon State, USC, UCLA, Arizona State, California and Washington, with Washington State being the doormat. From top to bottom, this could be the second best conference in the country, behind the SEC, but it's sometimes difficult to see that by looking at the standings and these teams' records. Oregon State has struggled some without James Rodgers in the lineup, but even at 4-4, one has to remember that two of those losses came against TCU and Boise State, whom are a combined 18-0. USC has lost two games on last second field goals (Washington and Stanford). UCLA clobbered Texas and beat Oregon State last week. Arizona State should have beaten Wisconsin, but fell an extra point short. They also gave Oregon arguably their toughest test thus far. Cal has been great at home, but awful on the road, almost falling to Wazzu last week in Pullman. Washington has underachieved some this year, largely because of senior quarterback Jake Locker, who has done anything but up his draft stock this season. One needs to only look at his stats against Nebraska this year, where he went 4 for 20 through the air. That wasn't due to pressure. He was just off with his throws, typically overthrowing his targets.

The SEC is, in my opinion, the toughest conference in the nation, but still aren't as good as they have been in recent years. Alabama, the defending National Champions, should have three losses, Arkansas, to go along with South Carolina and LSU. Auburn has been explosive offensively, but they're quite vulnerable on defense and I'm still not sold that they're one of the top two teams in the country. I have no idea how LSU has gone through the season with only one loss thus far. They may not play pretty, but they win. Although, Les Miles and company are fortunate that the Tennessee Volunteers' coaching staff weren't math majors in college, because if they could count, that would add a second loss to the Tigers' record. Florida has been disappointing on offense and aren't nearly the team they were. South Carolina has been a pretty good team, but it's been rocky at times. The same can be said of Arkansas, although, when their offense is clicking, they're tough to stop. Mississippi State has continued to improve under head coach Dan Mullen. Kentucky has been a pain at times, but still haven't proven to be Top 25 worthy. Georgia, Tennessee and Mississippi have all been major disappointments. Vandy has been pesky at times, but have reclaimed ownership as conference doormat. When comparing they to other conferences, I think the SEC reigns supreme, but I still don't feel they're as dominant as they have been in recent years.

The ACC, as usual, is a mess. Although, unlike in recent year, when I felt the conference was a bit underrated due to the lack of a Top 5 team, that isn't the case this year. There are several good teams in this conference, but I don't see one that even qualifies as very good, let alone great. Virginia Tech has played very well, especially on offense, since their opening two losses to Boise State and James Madison, but they still haven't proven to me to be a team that can compete against anyone on any given week. NC State and Florida State are solid, but inconsistent. Miami has been a disappointment, Jacory Harris in particular. He'd throw the ball into 11-man coverage if he had the chance. North Carolina has had a distraction-full season, with suspensions galore, but have rebounded fairly nicely and should be bowl eligible by the end of the regular season. The same is true of Clemson. Georgia Tech has been pretty disappointing. Their offense has, for the most part, been effective in running the triple option, but don't ever ask Josh Nesbitt to throw the ball. Watching him throw the ball is about as painful as rubbing soap in my eyes while being punched in the groin by a boxer. The Yellow Jackets' defense has struggled as well. Maryland has been a fairly pleasant surprise. Virginia has been rather bipolar, but have proven to not be as easy a W as they have in the last 2-3 years. Boston College has been a disappointment, but still have an opportunity to become bowl eligible if they win 2 of their last 3. Wake and Duke have been double doormats for the conference. In large part, because of Florida State, Miami and North Carolina being on the up and up (so it seemed), I felt going into this season that the ACC would improve upon last season. I was quite wrong about that. They have a chance to close the season strong, especially if the Hokies continue to win, but based on what's happened so far, I wouldn't bet on it.

Finally, the Big East. I've always been one to stand up for this conference, which was made to feel like the little guy amongst the big six. I can't do that this year. Comparing the Big East to the other five this year is like comparing the Toledo Mudhens to the New York Yankees. It just can't be done. Who had been the doormat for the past 5+ years, Syracuse, has six wins and is bowl eligible, with a chance at the conference crown, if that tells you anything. Pittsburgh has been a disappointment, as has South Florida, Connecticut, Rutgers, Cincinnati and West Virginia. The only two clubs who haven't disappointed were the two clubs whom were the typical 7 and 8 in-conference the past few years, Louisville and Syracuse. At this point in time, there are no, I repeat, zero Big East teams in the Top 25.

There are many fairly good to good clubs this year, but I just haven't seen what could be cast as good to very good teams, let alone great, very much this season. It has made for a very entertaining and unpredictable season in college football, yet there's something missing as well.

- Why is it that Boise State gets the short end of the stick on a consistent basis? They've won how many consecutive games? They played Virginia Tech and Oregon State out-of-conference, won both games, yet are continually dropping in the polls and even if either Oregon or Auburn lose, if TCU wins their final two games, the Horned Frogs would likely beat out the Broncos for that second slot in the National Title Game. Perhaps there's a blue-field bias going on here or something.

- I think good defenses this year are about as scarce as Dodo Birds.

- For how entertaining it may be to watch Oregon and Auburn's offenses meet up in a high-scoring affair, I'm kind of pulling for an Oregon/Auburn match-up with TCU/Boise State. Oregon vs. TCU may be the most fun and interesting of the four potential match-ups, as Oregon has the nation's top offense and TCU has the top defense. Something has to give, right? Maybe? We shall see... I hope.