NCAAF Power Rankings: Week 8

WE KNOW WHAT WE'RE TALKING ABOUT...WE THINK

For the first time this season, I had my version of the perfect Saturday.  I pulled up a stool at the bar next to my friend JP, and we sat there and watched football, ate bad food and drank beer for 8 straight hours.

And to make it even better, we were in control of what games got played on the 5 huge flat screens above the bar.  Over the course of the day, we watched all of 10 games and a few minutes of half a dozen others.  I’m sure there’s not a better Saturday out there.  We even got to watch the ‘Cuse beat Akron AND cover the spread.  Not that we gamble or anything.

All in all, it wasn’t a great weekend for the nation’s top teams.  No big upsets, but it was ugly out there.  The Gators won a fugly one against a baaad Mississippi State team. ‘Bama won even uglier, and Iowa needed a TD as time expired to beat Michigan State.

And while we’re talking about the unimpressive, have you taken a look at the Heisman race?  Is there anyone out there who wants to win this thing? I can’t remember there ever being such a muddled mess of Heisman candidates this late in the season.  The “Big 3″ entering the season have all disappointed, and each new standout – Jacory Harris, Jahvid Best, Greg Paulus – has flamed out a week or so after joining the conversation.  Okay, I threw Paulus in there just to see if you were still paying attention.

• Sam Bradford – injured shoulder in 1st game, re-injured against Texas, surgery, done for year
• Tim Tebow – 7 games, 8 passing TDs, 4 INT, and only 3.9 yards per carry
• Colt McCoy – 7 games, 8 INT including at least 1 in every single game

We digress.  Here are this week’s rankings:

College Football

4.

No one deserves to be #1 right now so I’m not giving any handouts.  Here’s my thoughts on each – in no particular order:

Alabama: Needed 3 missed field goals (2 of which were blocked) to beat Tennessee at home 12-10. Just how bad was Alabama’s offense?  They failed to score a TD at home against a Vols defense that yielded 23 points to Ohio University.  Their 256 yards of total offense was 9 fewer than Tennessee QB Jonathan Crompton’s passing total.

Florida: Tebow had 2 interceptions returned for TDs on Saturday night.  They failed to score a TD on 4 of 5 trips in red zone – a glaring problem as they entered Saturday’s game ranked 76th in the country in red zone efficiency.  The biggest problem on offense may be that the team’s wide receivers aren’t able to create any separation against opposing teams’ secondaries.  Only Riley Cooper had more than 32 yards receiving (63).

Texas: Had the best weekend by far blitzing Missouri 41-7. McCoy looked great, completing 26-of-31 passes including 3 TDs. The special teams unit blocked a punt and fell on it in the end zone for a TD.  I’ve been hard on Texas all year because of their schedule, but considering the mediocrity around them, I can’t knock them anymore.

USC: The Trojans defense has cracks in it, giving up 36 to Oregon State one week after yielding 27 to Notre Dame.  Oregon State’s Sean Canfield completed 30-of-43 for 329 yards and 3 TD with 0 INT, while RB Jacquizz Rodgers totaled 113 on the ground.  The usually tough D almost blew a 19-point 4th quarter lead.

As for a 5th team, take your pick at this point.  I’m not really impressed by anyone.  Iowa, Boise State, Cincinnati, TCU.  Ugh.

Stay tuned for TJR’s NFL Power Rankings coming later in the week.