Note: these are for my top 25, not the top 25 as espoused by actual pollsters. I'm mean-spirited like that. Also, they get *really* fast near the end.
Auburn (#1)
Pretty much a talent-disparity victory of 38-7. Nothing major to see or take away from it, other than Kenny Irons sat. Brad Lester and Ben Tate took most of the offense; Tate looked especially impressive. Still, this is effectively a 1-AA opponent, so evaluate at your own risk.
USC (#2)
Sleptwalked through a 20-3 victory over Arizona. Really didn't do much of note, but props to the defense, who just obliterated the Wildcats.
Ohio State (#3)
28-6 victory over Penn State looked better than what it was thanks to a couple of late picks for TDs. The offense was pretty much shut down all game, although part of that was PSU and part of that was the rain. Important to note is that rain neutralized a lot of OSU's speed, which could be important later.
West Virginia (#4)
Tougher-than-expected victory over East Carolina. I think that Skip Holtz should sell his plan for stopping WVU's rushing attack to the highest bidder. Unfortunately, WVU just passed it instead. What could be interesting to note is that WVU actually can pass if needed, although I'm not sure if they can against a good secondary.
Florida (#5)
Basically the Tebow Game, for all intents and purposes. Kentucky put up a pretty good fight for 2 1/2 quarters, then Florida just slowly overwhelmed them. Watch for the Tebow Effect to have a pretty good impact on the team, as they can bring him in as basically a short-yardage QB.
Michigan (#6)
Woke up late to win a post big-game trap game over Wisconsin. Wisconsin's not that bad a team, either, so kudos to the Wolverines for pulling it off. Iowa's the only road block to an undefeated showdown against OSU. (Note that Iowa is a roadblock for both those teams.)
Louisville (#7)
Not too bad performance against a half-decent KSU defense. Don't look now, but Lousville's defense might be getting better at not allowing scores, which bodes well.
LSU (#8)
Woodshed beating of Tulane. Not that anyone's surprised at this; again, it's tough to take away much from a killer victory over inferior competition, as this is basically what LSU's done all season. Still like the team.
Virginia Tech (#9)
Struggled early against Cincinnati (the worst team in 1-A). Woke up to put them away, but lack of focus might be an issue down the line.
Georgia (#10)
Colorado gave the Dawgs one hell of a scare. Who knew? Hawkins fared better this time between the hedges, and Joe Cox unseated Matt Stafford, renewing the QB controversy. Just what this team needs.
Oregon (#11)
Beat the bye week after a questionable pass interference call; replays clearly showed Oregon's CB mauling a WR in the end zone (right down to the decapitation), but offensive pass interference was called. For some reason, Stanford also applied to have the result of their game stricken from the record books, although they were reluctant to explain.
Notre Dame (#12)
Brady Quinn for Heisman oh my god ND is back holy crap MSU sucks - which one of these three statements strung together is actually true?
Texas (#13)
Played pretty damn strong against an Iowa State team that I honestly thought was better than this. They've got the same question marks, but evidently the game was a blowout because Mack Brown and Greg Davis didn't think it was a big game.
Iowa (#14)
Quietly won 24-7 over Illinois. Notice that the only real press these guys have gotten was after the Syracuse victory. Wonder why that is; think they've noticed?
Boston College (#15)
LOLZ. Sorry. Win by luck, lose by luck, as NC State beat them in an ugly, ugly 17-15 game. So much for that BC in the BCS bandwagon - that had about 4 people on it, but still.
Clemson (#16)
Walked all over UNC big-time. Great game for them, as they're quickly proving that BC loss was a total fluke. Well, they had already proved it in my eyes with the FSU victory, but I'm a little biased.
TCU (#17)
(bye week)
Tennessee (#18)
Won 33-7 against Marshall, pulling away late. LaMarcus Coker may be the answer at RB, and they finally figured out how to stop the option - go after the ball carrier. Yeah, I know.
Oklahoma (#19)
Obliterated MTSU - just totally obliterated them. Now they've got two weeks to prep for Texas, and I'd be a little worried if I was a Longhorn.
Nebraska (#20)
Proved they're way better than FSU, killing Troy. Much-needed confidence booster.
California (#21)
Went all Madden-offense on Arizona St., just totally obliterating them and justifying my not ranking ASU. Yes, it is all about me.
Rutgers (#22)
Blasted Howard 56-7 in the "no shit" game of the week. Also, they're ranked for the first time in 30 years, which is admittedly cool.
Boise State (#23)
In a game that can't be good for the defense, Boise State beat Hawaii 41-34. Not the best of victories, I don't think, as Hawaii historically has problems on the mainland, but it was early in the season, which means that - among other things - it's not freezing-ass cold in Boise, meaning the Warriors had a shot.
Michigan St. (#24)
Why did I say "why not" last week, anyway? Played the entire second half of the ND game with both hands around their neck. Yikes. Great first half, though.
Missouri (#25)
Uh, don't look now, but Mizzou's defense is damn impressive. Maybe there's a second team from the Big 12 North after all.
