College Football - Week 8

There were some good games this past week so I hope you watched!

I went 4 - 1 last week with my picks (I've given up all hope on West Virginia now), so I'm now at 30-10. My college pick-em on espn.com got me 54 points out of a possible 55 (swung and missed on West Virginia), so I'm doing pretty well. Hopefully this week goes just as well, especially considering that I'm trying to pick harder games and not just the blowouts.

Here's What We Learned

I'll start off with my Buckeyes....what a game!....I was on my seat those last few minutes. I'm really proud of what OSU has been able to do this year. Trademark Urban Meyer takes a team blown up with injuries, including their star QB, and still pulls out the victory. OSU should have lost that game, but their bench showed how tough they really are. I know Miller is probably back this week and Hankins, too, but I almost wish we'd just play our younger players out the rest of the year so they can get some game experience. I don't care if we lose the rest of our games (except Michigan) since we've proven that we can win big games under Meyer. That's something OSU hasn't had since 2003.

I knew Kansas State would score a lot of points, I just thought West Virginia would, too. K-State is a legit #4 team in the country but won't be able to beat Florida or Bama. West Virginia is just pathetic. No Heisman trophy going there.

Florida has arguably the best defense in college football and a good offense to go with it. They can go through bad streaks offensively, but their D keeps them in games. I like Florida, they may just beat out Bama.

Oregon answered some questions about themselves and it only took them 2 months to do it. We all know their offense is great against all but great defenses (although ASU's isn't bad), but we know that their D is pretty solid and they can go on the road with a young QB and win big games. That's great news for Ducks fans who are probably mad because they've been saying this all season. Now they've finally proved it. They'll have a couple more tests with USC, Oregon State, and probably USC again.

LSU is very well-coached and runs with deep with talent. They went on the road in the middle of a brutal schedule and pulled out a win at Texas A&M. Granted, Texas A&M is a new SEC team, but they're pretty good. If teams start losing look for these Tigers to possibly slip into a national title game, if they can beat Alabama in 2 weeks.

Wisconsin has finally found its niche. I don't know if that includes winning big games on the road yet, but they're back to what people thought they were.

Auburn's offense is bad...sorry Paul. Love ya man! And at least you have a recent championship! How many teams can say that??

Utah State is almost as good as BYU and Utah, which in the state of Utah is a big transition. Just because their record is better doesn't mean that they're better. It's all about the quality of competition. The Aggies haven't had to play ASU and Oregon State on the road or USC at home. You're good and getting better every year, but hold off the "We're #1 in Utah" chants for now.

Northwestern nearly upset Nebraska at home. I called this a near-upset last week. Northwestern is good and Nebraska has gotten worse.

Notre Dame is clearly a level 2 team. They're not elite....more lucky that they're undefeated. I'd put them as the #10 best team in college football right now.

Michigan finally beat Michigan State. Took almost as long as finally beating Ohio State. Not gonna happen this year though!

Despite 2 losses, TCU is doing the most work for the small-conference teams who went big (or in BYU's case, slightly bigger) to BCS conferences. Utah is a mess and BYU is barely getting by. These were the top 3 teams of the mountain west conference. Put them in big-boy conferences and it's not as easy as just winning a bowl game.

USC is a top 5 team right behind Kansas State. When they lost to Stanford (barely), they had some injury problems. Now they're clicking on all cylinders. No one wants to play them right now.

Oklahoma has some bounce in their step after their WR's are now with it. Still don't think they're top 10, but they're getting better.

Speaking of which, here is my top fifteen teams in college football. I'm not looking at records. This is just who I think the best teams are:

1. Alabama
2. Florida
3. Oregon
4. Kansas State
5. USC
6. LSU
7. South Carolina
8. Florida State
9. Oregon State
10. Georgia
11. Oklahoma
12. Mississippi State
13. Texas Tech
14. Clemson
15. Ohio State

There's my top 15. I wanted to do 15 instead of 10 to get OSU in there =)

Games to Watch This Week

Florida at Georgia. This is gonna be a close game. I don't have a good feeling about either team. As much as I like Florida, on the road against an improving Georgia team should prove difficult. If I had to, I'd take the Gators...but not by much.

TCU at Oklahoma State. Both teams are doing fairly well, not great seasons. This should be a great match-up despite the fact neither team is ranked.

Michigan State at Wisconsin. This is a game Michigan State needs to win in order to remain in the elite conversation of the Big Ten. That's sad, too, since this is a down year for the conference. Expect the Badgers to ride their momentum to another win.

Michigan at Nebraska. Michigan is ranked in the BCS while Nebraska isn't too far behind. What makes this a game is that Nebraska is at home. They do well there. I hope they pull out a win against the Wolverines.

Notre Dame at Oklahoma. Arguably the biggest game this week, Notre Dame has won all their "big" games at home this year. Oklahoma is vastly improved with the production out of their young WR's. Expect Oklahoma to grab the upset.

Mississippi State at Alabama. I think THIS is the game of the week to watch! I have a friend in our apartment complex who's an Alabama fan. He said no matter how good Alabama is, they always squeek out with a win it seems like against Miss State. With Mississippi State making huge strides this year, don't be shocked if Alabama loses this week and then possibly again next week against LSU. The SEC gets all the glamour because it's a brutal place to be.

Not a ton of great games, but the ones on the slate are going to be really good. Here are my picks:

1. Ohio State beats Penn State on the road
2. Oklahoma upsets Notre Dame at home
3. Wisconsin beats Michigan State at home
4. TCU beats Okie State on the road
5. Alabama edges out Mississippi State

I really can't pick that Florida/Georgia game. I want to...but it could go either way. Same with my last 2 picks. I feel really good about Oklahoma and Wisconsin, though. Let's see what happens. Good luck to all your picks out there this week!