Ducks fly together to #1 ranking

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Go ahead. Laugh.

I deserve it.

I’m the guy who said Oregon wouldn’t be the same team this year because of the losses of Jeremiah Masoli and LeGarrette Blount. Oops.

I’m the guy who said New Mexico would come within a touchdown (31-24) of beating Oregon in Eugene (real final: 72-0). Oops.

Yes, I’m even the guy who criticized the offseason, saying they wouldn’t recover. Oops.

I’m also the guy who can admit when he’s wrong (though it doesn’t happen often).

I was wrong. Oregon is good. So good, in fact, that I can’t find a team better through two weeks. And the Ducks aren’t just thinking BCS. That was last year. This year, Oregon is thinking national championship.

Week 2 rankings:

1)  Oregon Ducks (2-0)
If you can find me a team that has played two more convincing games against quality competition, please come forward.  The Ducks beat a Mountain West team by 72, then went to Knoxville and won by five touchdowns.  That’s not normal.

2)  Alabama Crimson Tide (2-0)
No Mark Ingram, no problem for the ‘Tide against JoePa.  Trent Richardson is not just Ingram’s replacement – he’s now a Heisman contender after his 144 rushing yards paced Alabama in a convincing win over the young Nittany Lions.

3)  Ohio State Buckeyes (2-0)
Against a Miami program that’s as good as its been since the ’03 Fiesta Bowl, Terrelle Pryor did just enough on offense to win the rematch.  Although he didn’t do much with his arm, Pryor’s 113 rushing yards kept the defense off the field.

4)  TCU Horned Frogs (2-0)
TCU overcame some mistakes to beat Oregon State in Dallas.  Last week, they were virtually perfect in a 62-7 slaughter of Tennessee Tech.  Six Horned Frogs saw the end zone.  Seven of the teams first eight games are in the state of Texas.

5)  Michigan Wolverines (2-0)
Before you start whining about how high they are, look at the schedule.  UConn is a good team, and that game wasn’t close.  Now look at the Notre Dame game.  Michigan came back to beat a likely nine-win team on the road.  Quality.

6)  Texas Longhorns (2-0)
Mack Brown might have the best defense in the country, but we already knew that.  This week, he let Garrett Gilbert throw more, and the first year starter rewarded his coach with 222 yards, a touchdown, and no turnovers for the second straight game.

7)  Florida Gators (2-0)
The Gators overcame another slow start to blow by in-state rival South Florida.  Florida used big plays and five turnovers to set up 31 second half points and pull away in a game that featured no fumbled snaps after having eight the week before.

8)  Nebraska Cornhuskers (2-0)
Nebraska’s 38 points against Idaho Saturday was deceiving.  The defense scored 14 of them and forced five takeaways, and the offense had trouble getting into a groove.  A road date with Washington Saturday is the Cornhuskers’first real test.

9)  Iowa Hawkeyes (2-0)
The in-state rivalry with the Cyclones is always a fun matchup for the fans, but not for the players in the red and white.  Iowa dominated again Saturday behind 156 rush yards from Adam Robinson on just 14 carries.  Iowa ran it 50 times overall.

10)  Oklahoma Sooners (2-0)
The convincing win over Florida State probably proves the Utah State scare was a fluke.  Nevertheless, I can’t rank them higher until I see FSU-like performances every week.  Landry Jones threw for 380 yards and four touchdowns Saturday.

11)  Utah Utes (2-0)
The Utes backed up their overtime thriller over Pittsburgh with an impressive showing against UNLV.  Even though the offensive numbers were nearly identical, the Utah special teams forced the Rebels into too many mistakes.

12)  Arizona Wildcats (2-0)
Going to Toledo and winning by 39 was more impressive than beating the Citadel by 46, but the margins of victory and the dominance their defense has shown make it difficult to put them even this low.  The game of the week is in Tucson this week.

13)  Wisconsin Badgers (2-0)
After a good second half against UNLV, the Badgers looked extremely sluggish against San Jose State in the home opener.  John Clay was a workhorse once again, but the passing attack managed fewer than 200 yards.  Arizona State visits Saturday.

14)  LSU Tigers (2-0)
Find me another team that has two road wins over power conference opponents.  If you’re having trouble, that’s because there’s only one.  Les Miles is working his way off the hot seat with a hot start.  The defense held Vanderbilt to 135 total yards.

15)  Boise State Broncos (1-0)
They have one win, and it is against an 0-2 team that lost to an FCS team at home.  If the Broncos were to hang their hat on one win this year, Virginia Tech was going to have to be that win.  Now it’s not.  They are lucky to be in my top 15.

16)  Miami Hurricanes (1-1)
Miami is the best non-undefeated team in the country, but showed weaknesses against a very good Ohio State team.  After I praised Jacory Harris for the way he protects the ball in wins, he promptly threw four interceptions in the loss.

17)  South Carolina Gamecocks (2-0)
South Carolina started its SEC season off with a bang in knocking off a ranked Bulldogs team in Columbia.  Defense was the story for offensive-minded Steve Spurrier, as his team held Georgia to 61 rush yards and 192 pass yards.

18)  Stanford Cardinal
Going into the Rose Bowl and winning isn’t easy, but Stanford made it look that way Saturday night.  Andrew Luck was not great but mistake-free, and the defense shut out UCLA and scored a TD in Stanford’s first road win over UCLA since 1996.

19)  Arkansas Razorbacks (2-0)
My skepticism is fading.  For now.  Ryan Mallett battled through a rough first have to complete 28 passes for 400 yards and lift Arkansas to a 24 point second half to pull away from Louisiana-Monroe.  Greg Childs had 148 yards and two TDs.

20)  Penn State Nittany Lions (1-1)
Saturday’s loss to Alabama was a classic example of inexperience showing its colors against a good team.  The young Nittany Lions were not as physical as the ‘Tide, and it showed.  Sophomore Kevin Newsome got to take a few snaps at the end.

21)  Auburn Tigers (2-0)
Auburn has been less than impressive in both games, but winning on the road in the SEC is tough, and Auburn passed test one with a win at Mississippi State.  Six Tigers combined for 190 rushing yards.  Clemson comes to town this week.

22)  California Golden Bears (2-0)
I probably should have the Bears higher after outscoring opponents a combined 105-10 the first two weeks.  Kevin Riley threw four touchdowns in the latest parade, this a 52-7 win over soon-to-be Pac 10 for Colorado.

23)  Air Force Falcons (2-0)
After crushing Northwestern State in week one, Air Force dominated a ranked BYU team in Falcon Stadium.  The Cougars never saw the endzone in the Mountain West’s first game.  The Falcons head to Norman for a battle with OU Saturday.

24)  West Virginia Mountaineers (2-0)
The Mountaineers escaped Marshall in overtime Friday in a game they probably should have lost.  Noel Devine rushed for 112 yards, and Geno Smith threw for 316 yards on 32 pass completions.  Maryland and LSU are on the schedule next.

25)  Houston Cougars (2-0)
Case Keenum is not on pace for another record-breaking season, but he’s lighting up the scoreboards again for the Cougars.  After leading Houston to 68 points in the opener, he put up 54 Saturday.  Houston makes a trip to the Rose Bowl next.

Turner gives Buckeyes bracket boost

IMPORTANT: This is based on games played through Jan. 19.  If the tournament started Jan. 20, this is what my bracket would look like.

Last four in:  Arizona State, Old Dominion, Texas A&M, Maryland
First four out:  Virginia Tech, Marquette, Oklahoma State, San Diego State

Kentucky remains #1 overall.  They are now the last remaining unbeaten team in division 1.

Texas is still a one seed despite the loss to Kansas State.  The Longhorns have a better strength of schedule than Kansas, as well as a more legitimate loss.

Despite Kansas State’s win over Texas, the schedule, as well as the loss to unranked Missouri, are not impressive enough to push them into a #2 spot yet.

Purdue takes another dip after the Northwestern loss, though they rebounded nicely with a tough win at Illinois.

Georgia Tech jumps to a #5 seed.  The Yellow Jackets now have wins over Duke, North Carolina and Clemson in the ACC.  Also making big jumps this week were Ohio State and Vanderbilt.

Now in as conference champions are Campbell and Western Kentucky, replacing East Tennessee State and Denver.

Major conference breakdown:

ACC:  7
Big 12:  6
Big East:  6
SEC: 5
Big Ten:  4
Pac 10:  2

See the complete bracket here

March Madness…if it started today

IMPORTANT: This is based on games played through Jan. 12.  If the tournament started Jan. 13, this is what my bracket would look like.

I focused more on which teams got in and what seeds they would be, and less on balancing teams from the same conference in different regions.  As the weeks progress, the bracket will get more realistic.

Last four in:  UAB, Oklahoma State, Virginia Tech, Wichita State
First four out:  Minnesota, Louisville, Old Dominion, San Diego State

Kentucky is the #1 overall seed based on a much tougher strength of schedule than Texas.  Texas does have the benefit of playing its regional in Houston.

Kansas drops to a #2 seed based on having the weakest loss among them, Villanova and Syracuse, as well as the lowest strength of schedule.

Purdue takes a big dip, dropping to a #3 seed after two straight losses in conference play.

Minnesota and Louisville are out because, while they played a tough SOS, they have few if any quality wins.

Oklahoma State gets in because of its 29-point win over Texas Tech Saturday.

Wichita State is in for now, but the Missouri Valley will likely only get one bid if its conference champion wins the conference tournament.

Don’t agree?  Comment below and tell me why.

See the bracket here

Forever young

Guest columnist Brendan Wilson

Is there any question to who the best team in college basketball is right now? Following a 64-61 win over #12 Connecticut, Kentucky is now 9-0 and look better than they have in years. Did I mention this win came five days after they downed #11 North Carolina? Maybe we should rewind a few weeks. Kentucky beat Miami-Ohio by two, Sam Houston State by 10, and Stanford by eight in overtime. Having second thoughts? Don’t. This team is for real. Freshman John Wall dropped 25 on UConn last night, and seems to be getting better by the game. Freshman DeMarcus Cousins is a phenom as well averaging almost 15 per game. What about freshman Patrick Patterson, who is averaging over 16 per game. Yes, their three best players are three freshmen who do not shadow away in the spotlight.

John Calipari has this team running on all cylinders. No, they have not faced big size down low like Kansas or as an athletic of a team as Texas, but these past two wins have shown a lot in the character of this team. This is a team who is going to win the SEC easily. Florida and Mississippi are off to good starts but one can only ask how long it will last. Tennessee seems to figure as the Wildcats biggest task within conference play. Next up is a young Indiana team who is playing with a lot of heart, but simply will not contend with this team. After that, Kentucky does not leave their home floor for 30 days. Jan. 2 figures as their next challenge against Louisville. Inexperience seems to be the one question about this team, and I don’t see it being an issue. Kentucky may have finally found its way with one of the best recruiting classes of all time, and in sequence, could be heading to their first final four since 1998. Until then, there is a lot of basketball to be played!

Five must-see bowls, five snoozers

The 2009-2010 bowl season is sure to produce some interesting storylines, even if the games may not be great.  In the Sugar Bowl, a top five offense will clash with a top five defense.  In Dallas, a Cotton Bowl matchup features two teams with explosive offenses who both have to feel disappointed to be in that game.  The day after Christmas, USC will play a bowl game.  Six days later, Bobby Bowden will coach his final game, against his former team.  Three days after that, two non-BCS schools will meet in a BCS bowl.

Here, I give you five bowls to watch even if it means skipping work or family reunions, and five bowls with which you can hit the snooze button.

Sleep through…

5)  Chick-fil-A Bowl:  When Virginia Tech meets Tennessee on New Year’s Eve, things will get ugly.  The Hokies have to consider this season a disappointment, yet they have a chance for another 10-win season under Frank Beamer.  The Hokie defense will make life miserable for a vanilla Tennessee offense and should win comfortably.  Alternative suggestion: start your New Year’s Eve plans early.

4)  Fiesta Bowl: Is the BCS really this scared?  Two of the past three years, a BCS buster has knocked off a powerhouse.  So logically, the BCS puts its two undefeated busters up against each other as to not ruin this system by having another Oklahoma or Alabama fall in the spotlight.  I thought the point of these teams making it to a BCS game was to see how they matched up with BCS schools.  Now we’ll never know.  Alternative suggestion: rewind time and put TCU up against Georgia Tech and Iowa against Boise State.

3)  Texas Bowl: Navy still has one more game to play, meaning they lose two weeks of preparation on Missouri, whom they will play on New Year’s Eve in Houston.  Not only that, but Navy can’t throw the ball.  In fact, they won a game this year in which they didn’t even attempt a pass.  If they try to run, Missouri will stuff it (12th in the nation against the run).  If they try to throw, they will be out of their element.  On the other side, the Tigers have scored at least 32 points in five straight games.  It won’t be close.  Alternative suggestion: see Chick-fil-A Bowl suggestion.

2)  Gator Bowl: That’s really nice of the Gator Bowl to invite Bobby Bowden to play his last game there.  So cute.  Too bad the whole nation will be watching a different 1 p.m. New Year’s Day bowl instead.  Bowden and Florida State do not belong in this game after a .500 finish.  Not only that, but they are going up against a talented West Virginia team which ended the season with wins over Pitt and Rutgers, and a near shocker in Cincinnati.  The ‘Noles don’t have a defense, and West Virginia will exploit that early and often.  Alternative suggestion: watch ABC (see below for why).

1)  Emerald Bowl: Yes, the most boring yet comedic thing to watch will be Boston College trying to move the ball on USC’s defense.  Despite the Trojans’struggles this season, the defense has been relatively stable against bad offenses, and Boston College’s is ranked 97th in the country.  Give Pete Carroll a month to prepare for anyone, and they’re in trouble.  The Eagles don’t have a chance, especially in San Francisco.  Alternative suggestion: leave one Christmas present unopened so you have something to look forward to the next day.

Must-see games

5)  Holiday Bowl: What a dandy this will be.  Heisman candidate Ndamukong Suh and the ninth ranked Nebraska defense faces a top 20 defense in Arizona.  Normally I like Nebraska in this game, but the game being in San Diego neutralizes things.  Arizona is riding high after winning at USC, and Nebraska is feeling good about their “win” against Texas.  Double digits may be enough to win this game.

4)  Rose Bowl: The best BCS matchup features the perennial Big Ten champion Ohio State Buckeyes and…someone other than USC.  This alone makes it a must watch, but considering it’s the Ducks, a team that got white-hot after an opening night loss to Boise State, it should be a classic.  Terrelle Pryor and Jeremiah Masoli should set off plenty of fireworks.

3)  Las Vegas Bowl: It’s amazing that a team can go from playing on New Year’s Day in the Rose Bowl to playing in a bowl on Dec. 22.  But that’s exactly what happened to the Oregon State Beavers after a heartbreaking loss in Eugene Thursday night.  In comes BYU, a team with lofty expectations before being trampled at home by Florida State, then TCU.  And if there’s anyone who can take apart the Beavers, it’s underrated senior quarterback Max Hall, who is ahead of Colt McCoy, Tim Tebow and Kellen Moore in passing yards per game despite fewer passing attempts.  Buckle up for an offensive explosion.

2)  Poinsettia Bowl: Ironically, last year’s Poinsettia Bowl featured Boise State and TCU, with a final scored of 17-16.  This year the San Diego bowl game should be equally entertaining.  Two teams ranked in the preseason top 25 meet, and this will be about Utah’s defense trying to stop California’s Jahvid Best, who will be returning from a concussion suffered last month.  Both teams are out to prove that early season losses were a fluke.

1)  Capital One Bowl: The best bowl game of the season takes place in Orlando on New Year’s Day.  LSU will face Penn State, and if you recall, things were looking up for these teams in November.  Penn State had Ohio State coming to Happy Valley for the conference championship, while LSU actually held a lead on Alabama.  Neither team came through though, and wind up here instead.  The key to this game is LSU’s defense.  They must hold Penn State down, because the Tiger offense, ranked #108 in the country, won’t have a lot of opportunities against Penn State’s eighth ranked defense.

The case for Case

Every Heisman contender has a Heisman moment – that game where, when it’s over, you say to yourself “wow, he really deserves the Heisman trophy.” After watching Colt McCoy rip Texas A&M to shreds tonight, I sort of had that feeling. Sort of.

After all, it’s easy to make a case for McCoy. He is 12-0, and likely headed for the national championship. He now has 27 touchdown passes and nine interceptions to go along with nearly 3,500 yards. However, the nine interceptions is more than he had in 13 games last season. And in order to match his touchdown and yardage total from a year ago, he needs seven TD passes and about 400 yards in the next two games. Even if he does that, he will have needed 14 games to do what he did in 13 in 2008. To go along with those monster 2008 numbers, he had 591 rushing yards. This year he has just 368, and only because he rushed for 175 tonight. He also has nine fewer rushing touchdowns.

Here’s the question: should we compare a Heisman candidate’s numbers to those of a season ago? My answer is no. But the voters will. And McCoy’s superior 2008 season wasn’t good enough to win the Heisman. Why should this year be different?

So what about Mark Ingram? The Alabama sophomore is 11-0, likely 12-0 after the Iron Bowl, and is averaging 6.8 yards per carry and 127 yards per game. He seems to be getting most of the talk right now, but why? Is it because the Tide are #2 in the nation? Because he plays for a school with a rich tradition? Because he was on the cover of Sports Illustrated?  He only has 12 touchdowns.  We might as well throw UTEP’s Donald Buckrem in the mix as well.  He has more yards, yards per game and touchdowns than Ingram.  And he certainly doesn’t have the offensive line Ingram has.

So do you give it to Ingram, with worse numbers than a handful of running backs from non-BCS schools, because those running backs don’t have to run against SEC opponents?

Here’s another running back you may not know about – Toby Gerhart.  He plays for Stanford.  Stanford is in the Pac 10, and believe it or not, it’s the best conference in the country.  Don’t believe me?  Read this.

Gerhart plays for a school who’s playing nine teams from the best conference in football, plus bowl eligible Notre Dame.  All in all, Stanford has a schedule ranking (13)  that’s 28 places higher than Alabama (41) and 43 places higher than Texas (56).  Gerhart has rushed for 1,531 yards, second only to Buckrem, and has 23 rushing touchdowns, second to no one.  But his team is 7-4.  So I ask, should we give the Heisman to a guy with better numbers but a worse record?  Tim Tebow won the award the year he went 9-4, but finished third the year he won a national championship at 13-1.

It’s taken me a while to get to this option, but I now present you with the only one that makes sense: Case Keenum.  Say what you want about his strength of schedule or the Houston play calling.  I’m about to shut you up.

Keenum is 9-2, and almost surely to be 11-2 following a Conference USA championship in a few weeks.  He is more than 1,000 yards ahead of the next highest passer in the country.  That’s unreal.  Forget the schedule.  He’s a machine.  1,000 yards?  Are you kidding?  He doesn’t have a Jordan Shipley on his team.  There’s no Mark Ingram or Toby Gerhart to balance the offense.  This is a one man show.  Defenses know exactly what’s coming and still can’t stop it.  That’s impressive.  His 36 touchdowns leads the nation going away.  He’s the only player in the country throwing for more than 400 yards per game.  And for those of you saying that his pass attempts are inflated, try wrapping this number around your head: six interceptions.  Six.  in 553 pass attempts.  McCoy has three more in 161 fewer attempts.  And McCoy has a line that doesn’t let anyone touch him.

Keenum, unlike McCoy, will best his 2008 numbers, blow away all 2009 QBs in every statistical category, and, sadly, probably won’t even be invited to New York.  But he should be.  And he should win it.  This is a very interesting race, and the other contenders have too many question marks surrounding their legitimacy.  For once, give it to the little guy, on the little team.

My Heisman ballot:

1)  Case Keenum
2)  Colt McCoy
3)  Toby Gerhart

UConn, Duke set for showdown

Want some excitement in college basketball this week?

Too bad.

Only one non-tournament game features ranked teams, and it’s Minnesota  Butler.  Yuck.

Duke is on a path to play UConn for the NIT Tip Off title in the Garden Friday night.  Two days before that, Arizona State and LSU will put up respective tests before falling in the semis.

None of e games were on the staff’s schedule, because we didn’t know what the results would be.

USC loss creates chaos for BCS

When the smoke had cleared in the Coliseum Saturday, all that remained was the remnants of a 55-21 thrashing USC took at the hands of upstart Stanford.  Two years ago, Stanford pulled off one of the biggest upsets of all time with a 24-23 win that spoiled USC’s national title hopes.  This time, Stanford’s win spoiled the Trojans’BCS hopes.

And who gains as a result of USC’s loss?  That would be the Big East.  More importantly the loser of the Dec. 5 showdown between Cincinnati and Pittsburgh.  Now that USC has lost again, the loser of that game could still make it to a BCS bowl, especially if that loser is the Bearcats.

Cincinnati is in a position where even a loss to Pitt won’t mean exclusion from the BCS.  They would still be 11-1 and likely in the top 10 in the BCS rankings.  As we learned in 2007, the BCS bowl committee favors one loss teams over strength of schedule, so Penn State and Iowa won’t have much of an argument even if both schools finish 10-2.

If the Panthers lose to the Bearcats, things really get interesting.  The Panthers, as well as a trio of Big Ten non-conference champions (Penn State, Iowa and Wisconsin) and Oklahoma State would all be 10-2.  That’s five teams fighting for one spot.

- First, the committee should determine the best of the Big Ten schools.  Iowa should get the nod because they beat both Penn State and Wisconsin, and took Ohio State to overtime in the Shoe without their starting quarterback.  That leaves Iowa, Oklahoma State and Pittsburgh.

- From here, strength of schedule plays a role, but the committee will also look at which teams’fans travel the best and which are most marketable.  Iowa probably has the advantage in terms of being marketable and traveling well, followed by Oklahoma State and Pittsburgh.  However, Pittsburgh would likely end up playing the most difficult schedule by season’s end.  Their schedule is ranked 57 by the computers right now, but will go up after games against West Virginia and Cincinnati to close the year.  Oklahoma State has the weakest SOS at 60.  Iowa is 33, but with a game against Minnesota remaining, which will deflate the ranking

It will be tough for the committee to call this one.  I can see them taking Iowa because they have been historically kind to the Big Ten.  Iowa has been arguably the surprise team of the year, and they do have quality wins over Penn State, Wisconsin and Arizona.  However, Pittsburgh, again, will probably have the toughest strength of schedule, and more than half of their conference contains teams with three or fewer losses.  That’s quite an argument as well.  Here’s how I see it playing out:

Sugar Bowl:  Alabama vs Cincinnati – The SEC runner-up playing the Big East runner-up.  Both teams will be in the top 10 despite losing their respective final games.

Orange Bowl:  Georgia Tech vs Pittsburgh - The ACC champion against the Big East champion.

Fiesta Bowl:  TCU vs Boise State – Both teams will be automatic qualifiers because they will be in the top eight.  The BCS…and the nation…wants to see this game.

Rose Bowl:  Oregon vs Ohio State – The traditional Big Ten champion against Pac 10 champion game.

BCS National Championship:  Florida vs Texas – The BCS #1 against the BCS #2.

Boise the thorn in Oregon’s rose

Do you remember the first game of the college football season? Because I do. I remember the blue turf. The BCS talk. The airtight Boise defense. The mistake-riddled Duck offense. The gross final score. The LeGarrette Blount punch heard ’round the world.

Who knew that game would have such big implications. And what a reversal of implications it was.

Going in, many thought that a Boise State home loss to Oregon would eliminate the Broncos from BCS contention, while a win meant a BCS-bound trip via coasting through the other 11 games. Few probably thought that a Boise win would eliminate Oregon from the national championship, because no one thought they’d be in contention in the Pac 10. Seven games later, it’s appropriate to think about the inevitable “what if?”

The Ducks are ranked #8 in the nation. This with one loss. Imagine if they had beat the Broncos in Boise that night. They would be 8-0, and possibly ranked as high as #3. After all, they would have beaten Boise State, and they own wins over #12 USC, #14 Utah and #20 California. That’s four top 20 wins they would have had. Texas has one. Iowa has three. Cincinnati and TCU have zero.

Let’s not forget margin of victory. Oregon has won by a combined 73 points against ranked teams not counting the Boise State game. Iowa, the only other team with as many wins over ranked opponents as Oregon, has won those games by a combined 31 points.

I think Oregon would be #3 if they had won on opening night, with an inside track to the national championship against the SEC champion. But they didn’t win. Instead they’ll accept roses and go play in Pasadena, just a week early.

The Rose Bowl is a great honor. But that Rose will have a thorn. What if…?

College football picks – No BCS for USC

When the Ducks beat the Trojans on Saturday night, it will end USC’s hopes of winning the Pac 10 championship and returning to the Rose Bowl.  Their BCS streak will be over, and it will be somewhat funny seeing them in the Holiday Bowl before New Year’s.  How gross would it be to see an Oregon/Iowa Rose Bowl?  Well get ready nation, it just might happen.

(24) Mississippi 30, Auburn 24

(1) Florida 34, Georgia 20

(18) Miami 31, Wake Forest 7

(3) Texas 35, Oklahoma State 26

(10) Oregon 28, (4) USC 24

UPSET SPECIAL:  Southern Mississippi 35, (15) Houston 31

Last Week:  4-2
Overall:  30-18
Upsets:  5-3