It’s another Saturday in the fall, which means more college football. As the season enters October, things are starting to get much more real in the sport. The true contenders will begin to separate themselves from the rest. As conference games begin in full force, there is entertaining football to watch from sun-up to sundown.
When the AP rankings come out each week, I always have some thoughts. Here were my main takeaways from this week:
1. Louisville should be ranked. The Cardinals are 4-0, and yes, they have had a few close games, but so has most of the country. They blew out Boston College last week, which Florida State couldn’t do. Jeff Brohm’s high flying offense is averaging 43 points per game. They should be ranked above the SEC teams with losses, like Tennessee, Florida, and Ole Miss.
2. Ole Miss should not be ranked and Bama should not move up a spot to 12. I believe the game last week said a lot more about how bad Ole Miss is rather than how good the Tide are. Ole Miss barely beat a Tulane team playing their backup quarterback. They don't need to be ranked.
3. Rank Washington higher. I said it last week and I’ll say it again: reward Washington for their insane offense and qb play from Michael Penix.
4. When are voters going to make Georgia and Michigan earn it? I get giving Georgia the benefit of the doubt because they are back to back national champions, but c’mon. Both of these teams have looked anything but dominant, but yet they are still No. 1 and 2 in the country.
5. Put Washington State higher than No. 16. The Cougs have wins over ranked Oregon State and Wisconsin. Cam Ward has thrown 16 touchdowns without a pick. The offensive line has only allowed two sacks all season.
6. Why are Tennessee and Florida above Mizzou? At this point in the season, not having losses means something. Florida and Tennessee have both lost and it’s not like either one of them has a Heisman candidate on the roster. Florida’s best win is the Vol’s, which is a good win, but Tennessee’s best win is literally UTSA. Mizzou has yet to lose and beat Kansas State.
Now, for some picks and analysis of this weekend’s games:
(10)Utah at (19)Oregon State:
Utah is a top ten team, but the attention around the team has been very quiet. The Utes are 4-0 despite starting quarterback Cam Rising not taking a single snap yet. The offense has been hit hard by the injury bug, but they’ve still found ways to beat two ranked teams, UCLA and Florida. The offense may not be pretty to watch, but because of the defense, they aren’t having to score much to still win. The defense is only allowing 9.8 points per game.
I would expect that number to increase after they play Oregon State. The Beavers have put up at least 25 points each game. DJ Uiagalelei can create explosive plays if he has time. I do think the Utah defense will get pressure on Uiagalelei frequently, which could hinder the Oregon State offense.
It’s still unknown whether Rising will play or not. If he does, I think Utah wins. If not, I would take Oregon State to win at home after their comeback against fellow Pac-2 member Washington State fell short.
(8)USC at Colorado:
The Colorado hype train finally came back down to earth. Deion knew his Buffs were overmatched, and played to not get blown out. I think they match up with USC better, and should be able to score more than six points. USC’s defense looks like any other Alex Grinch defense. The Trojans had 14 missed tackles last week. Good thing they have Caleb Williams under center, who has had some Patrick-Mahomes like out-of-the pocket plays recently. Colorado should be able to keep the game close in the first half, especially with it being 9 a.m. for the Trojans’ body clock. I do think USC will pull away in the second half for a win.
(23)Mizzou at Vandy:
This game is eerily similar to 2019, when Mizzou was freshly ranked and went into Nashville and got beat. Recent games between the two have been very close, but this year’s Mizzou team appears to be much stronger than the previous ones. The Brady Cook- Luther Burden connection has turned up a major notch. Burden has three straight games with over 100 receiving yards, and might be the most under-rated wide receiver in the country. Cook doesn't turn the ball over, which is a silent key to winning games. Both are listed as questionable on the injury report, but that was the case last week as well, and they both played.
Vanderbilt, meanwhile, is not looking so hot, having lost three in a row. The Commodores do have some fast wide receivers who can evade blocks and make big plays. They might not have their starting quarterback, AJ Swan, throwing to them, as he is listed as questionable with an elbow contusion. Swan threw three interceptions, including two pick-6s last week against Kentucky.
I think this is the game Mizzou finally puts it all together and isn’t in a one possession game. The Cook-Burden connection, along with help in the run game from Cody Schrader, should help the Tiger’s pull away early.
(11)Notre Dame at (17)Duke:
After Notre Dame lost to Ohio State last season, the Irish turned around and lost to Marshall at home.. They enter into a tough test at Wallace Wade Stadium, where the last time two ranked teams met there was November of 1994. Gameday is in town and the atmosphere should be rocking (even for a basketball school).
I see this being a very low scoring, defensive battle, as Duke’s defense has yet to allow over 14 points this season. Despite only having ten men on the field, Notre Dame did a very impressive job of limiting the explosiveness of Marvin Harrison Jr and Emeka Egbuka.
Both quarterbacks are NFL caliber, but I would give the upper hand to Sam Hartman. Ultimately, I think Notre Dame continues their streak of dominating ACC teams, and comes out on top in a close game.
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