The Baker’s Dozen (last week’s ranking in parenthesis)1. Bears (6-0) (1) - uh oh....are the old Bears back - all defense - no offense?......2. Chargers (4-1) (2) - the Bolts go into a tough situation this week at KC.....3. Colts (5-0) (3) - Indy was on a bye....watch the Redskins this week....a loss here would be a 3 game skid for the Skins....
4. Saints (5-1) (6) - Saints are sitting nice going on a bye this week.....5. Eagles (4-2) (4) - another great game....but this time they end up on the short end...
6. Patriots (4-1) (7) - a rematch this week with Buffalo - a team that should have beaten the Pats in week 1......
7. Seahawks (4-1) (10) - classic game against the Rams...
8. Giants (3-2) (NR) - the G-men have bounced back nicely after the drubbing by Seattle a few weeks ago....
9. Panthers (4-2) (12) - the battle of the Cats......Bengals vs. Panthers.....
10. Bengals (3-2) (8) - just when you thought this was an elite team, they turn into the Bungals....11. Broncos (4-1) (11) - I will repeat what I wrote last week....they have won 3 ugly home games....9-6 in OT and two 13-3 wins....12. Steelers (2-3) (NR) - like I said before, don’t count this crew out just yet....
13. Ravens (4-2) (5) - maybe this team is not as good as first thought.....The Carp30. Texans (1-5) (NR) - doesn’t get any easier this week with the Jags coming to town...
31. Dolphins (1-5) (29) - a bit of confusion for those of you who had the Dolphins winning the division
32. Raiders (0-5) (32) - another week - another loss....they had their chance on Sunday....it’s not like the Broncos whipped them....
I honestly thought Michigan State was going to fire head coach John L. Smith after Saturday’s game.....I was not expecting Sparty to beat Ohio State.....but Michigan State looked pathetic to the point that I question if the players still care....a few years back the MSU administration fired head coach Bobby Williams after getting thumped by Michigan 49-3....the administration said that Williams lost control of his team....
Michigan State has talent, however they lack discipline and confidence – which comes back to their head coach - Smith....
The lack of discipline was on display during their first 4 offensive plays....after Ohio State turned the ball over on about their own 25-yard line, Michigan State threw a little swing pass that took them down to the OSU 1-yard line....Mistake 1 - MSU holding....
So that makes it now 1st and 3 at the 20.....they call a running play....instead of running straight ahead to get the first down, the back dances around in the backfield for a loss of 3 yards....Mistake 2.....
On 2nd down qb Drew Stanton hits his receiver for a first down, but the receiver drops the ball....Mistake 3....are you seeing a pattern here??....
Finally, on 3rd down, Stanton scrambles....instead of throwing the ball away to stay in field goal range, he allows himself to get sacked which takes them out of range for 3 points...Mistake 4...
Those 4 mistakes epitomize the lack of discipline under Smith.....
It’s unfortunate that Adrian Peterson may be lost for the season.....he was joy to watch with the ball....
Garrett Wolfe may have killed his chances to at least make it to New York for the Heisman presentation....the diminutive one was held to 25 yards rushing by Western Michigan....
Georgia head coach Mark Richt needs to settle on 1 quarterback the rest of the season.....senior Joe Tereshinki had his opportunity....even though he is raw and will make mistakes, Richt should go with true freshman Matt Stafford the rest of the season to determine if Stafford is able to lead the Bulldogs for the next 3 years....if not, he has to recruit another qb....
Boise State is still perfect (7-0) after their 40-28 win against New Mexico State .....
The Rutgers-Pitt game should be a donnybrook this Saturday....
In I-AA news, top ranked New Hampshire was dumped 42-23, at home, this past week by conference foe James Madison....
The best I-AA game this week is Northern Iowa (4-2) at YSU (6-1)....both teams are undefeated in the Gateway Conference....NIU has historically been a thorn in the side of the Penguins....
Bear Hunting - the Fighting Manginos have slipped below .500 after losing to Okie State 42-32.....Kansas is now 3-4 and 0-3 in the conference....
What more can be said about that deplorable act of thuggery Saturday at the Orange Bowl between Miami and Florida International.....the players involved in that brawl should be stripped out their jersey and booted from the team - permanently....case closed!!!....
Heisman watch
If the vote ended today.....and if I actually had a vote, here are my top 4 players along with my +1, sleeper pick....
1. Troy Smith, Ohio State - did nothing to hurt his chances....
2. Brady Quinn, Notre Dame - the Irish were off last week....
3. Pat White, W. Virginia - the qb rushed for 235 yards and 3 touchdowns....
4. Calvin Johnson, Ga. Tech - the Jackets were off last week...
+1 Chad Henne, Michigan - he has moved the Wolverines into title contention.....his leadership and steady play may make him a leading candidate next season....
Sweet 16 + 1 (Last week ranking in parenthesis)1. Ohio State (1) (7-0) - on cruise control until November 18th......
2. Michigan (5) (7-0) - the best front 7 in college football....3. Southern Cal (3) (6-0) - people need to chill out about S.C....
4. W. Virginia (4) (6-0) - what a game by qb Pat White.....5. Tennessee (6) (5-1) - the 3rd Saturday in October means 1 thing - Alabama vs. Tennessee.....
6. Auburn (9) (6-1) - cannot understand why so many picked against Auburn vs. Florida....7. Texas (7) (6-1) - took care of Baylor....young Colt is getting better each week.....8. Notre Dame (8) (5-1) - UCLA comes to South Bend....they may need John Wooden’s help on Saturday....
9. Florida (2) (6-1) - last week Auburn dropped from #2 to #9....this week it’s the Gators turn.....10. Louisville (10) (6-0) - Brohm is back....at the Cuse this week, then they take on W. Va....11. Clemson (11) (6-1) - practiced against Temple on Friday night.....12. Georgia Tech (12) (5-1) - had a week to prepare for their showdown against Clemson....13. Cal (13) (6-1) - wideout DeSean Jackson may be the best unknown player in the country....14. Arkansas (14) (5-1) - they whacked some southwest, northwest state team....15. LSU (15) - (5-2) - shellacked Kentucky 48-0....this week it’s Fresno State’s turn....
16. Rutgers (NR) (6-0) - the Scarlet Knights were my +1 a few weeks back.....they are now worthy of a top 16.....+1. Pitt (6-1) - real quietly Dave Wannstedt has the Panthers at 6-1 with a big game at home this week vs. Rutgers.....Pitt controls its own destiny to make a major bowl....
