After a topsy turvy week in college football, we at the YCS are here to provide you with the true college football rankings. How far should Oregon climb up the rankings? Should the top 3 remain the same? How do we sort out the rest of the unbeatens? And in the Heisman Watch, did anyone finally claim #1? To find the answers, you're in the right place, because we're the only ones who tell it like it is!
YCS STANDINGS
1. Texas (8-0, last week W at #14 Oklahoma St. 41-14, up next Sat vs. UCF )
-Another important Big 12 game, another easy win for the 'Horns. Instead of riding the arm of Colt McCoy, the defense stepped up in a big way, picking Ok. St. QB Zac Robinson off four times, taking two back to the house. The D didn't leave McCoy much work to do, but when called upon his form is finally starting to resemble the deadly accuracy of last season. What's more, Texas has one of the easiest finishing schedules in the country...unless you think one of UCF, Baylor, Kansas, or Texas A&M can give them a scare. With that weak schedule though, it may be hard for Texas to stay at #1 in the YCS for long...
2. Florida (8-0, last week W vs. Georgia 41-17, up next Sat. vs. Vanderbilt)
-Ok, so yeah, Georgia wasn't a match for Florida like we thought they would be...but, there's something more important that needs discussed in this space, the disgusting actions of Florida HC Urban Meyer. LB Brandon Spikes did the wrong thing by trying to gouge the eyes of a Georgia player at the bottom of a pile on Saturday. On one hand it's a part of a violent game, but on the other hand, he got caught and should be punished. But, for Mr. Self-Righteous Urban Meyer to only suspend him for ONE HALF is atrocious. If you aren't going to send a message that that type of dirty play is wrong, then don't suspend him. If you condone those sorts of dirty tactics, don't bother with this empty gesture. How many times will Urban Meyer give the middle finger to the rest of college football before anyone gets offended?
3. Alabama (8-0, last week idle, up next Sat vs. #9 LSU)
-When things are this tight at the top of the YCS, you're going to lose ground if you don't play. Still, if Alabama can take care of business against the Bayou Bengals this Saturday, they should vault right back to the top of the YCS table. Although, if they're going to win against LSU, QB Greg McElroy is going to have to improve from his mid-season swoon...a one-dimensional team against LSU isn't a good idea.
4. Cincinnati (8-0, last week W at Syracuse 28-7, up next Sat. vs. UConn)
-The Bearcats must be getting dizzy after their roller coaster ride in the polls these past two weeks. They've gone from 5th to 8th to 5th in the last three weeks in the BCS, while we at the YCS have consistently given UC the credit they deserve. Backup QB Zach Collaros had another impressive outing in relief of Tony Pike, who could be back as soon as this Saturday night against UConn. A primetime showdown, or more specifically a primetime blowout, would be just what the doctor ordered for their faint national title hopes.
5. TCU (8-0, last game W vs. UNLV 41-0, up next Sat. at San Diego St.)
-You can't blame TCU if somehow the BCS leaves them with the short end of the stick. After dismantling a talented BYU team on the road, they were equally dominant in an impressive shutout of UNLV. The offense, led by QB Andy Dalton put up 578 yards of offense while only giving up 160 yards on defense. TCU will have one last chance to impress the voters and computers in two weeks against #14 Utah.
6. Boise St. (8-0, last week W vs. San Jose St. 45-7, up next Sat. at La. Tech)
-Boise continues to keep on trucking much like their BCS Buster counterparts TCU. The Blue Turf Boys are still playing at a high level, but without a ranked team left on their schedule, can they do enough to impress the polls to move ahead of TCU. Of course, as is usual in college football, the answer isn't in their hands...it's in the hands of our #7 team in the countdown.
7. Oregon (7-1, last game W vs. #5 USC 47-20, up next Sat. at Stanford)
-Oh my God! The Yoders picked a big game correctly! Don't worry, I'm just as surprised as you all are. We expected the dual threat ability of Jeremiah Masoli to cause problems for USC, but we didn't expect the consistently tough running of Fr RB LaMichael James (more on him later) that exposed the Trojans shockingly weak defense. Give all credit in the world to Oregon for how they've rebounded after that tough Week 1 loss to Boise St. For once, it's the Ducks with the inside track to Pasedena. One final thought, for those praying for a BCS meltdown, start hoping the Oregon/Boise St. rankings have some impact on the national title picture.
8. Iowa (8-0, last game W vs. Indiana 42-24, up next Sat. vs. Northwestern)
-Iowa plummets down the YCS once we finally tried giving them some credit. Please, don't let the final score of the game fool you...Iowa was this week's recipient of bogus officiating to favor a BCS contender. Let's set the scene, Indiana has outplayed Iowa the entire game and only by the grace of a miraculous pinball pick 6, Iowa is down 21-14. Ricky Stanzi is in the middle of throwing 4 INTs...in the 3rd quarter alone! WR Terrance Turner thinks he's caught a TD to give Indiana the momentum back and a 28-14 lead...just look at the replay below.
It's a TD, right? You can see the guy's foot hit the ground! From another angle, you can see the dirt kick up in the endzone! And yet, some bozo from the Big Ten overturned this play, Indiana missed the ensuing field goal, and Iowa went on to outscore the Hoosiers 28-3 the rest of the way. The sad thing is, this is the 2nd time this year Indiana has been screwed by Big Ten refs, the first being on the road at Michigan. If this had occured in a "major conference", which I guess only means the SEC, Big 12, or Pac-10, a congressional committee would be forming. Call me a conspiracy theorist, but there's no way Iowa's unbeaten status did not play a factor in SEVERAL officiating decisions on Saturday. As soon as this crock happened, I told Y1 the game was over, the fix was in and Iowa would storm back. Expect somebody in the Big 10 to eventually upset this lucky bunch of Hawkeyes, because they used up a lot of lives this past Saturday.
9. Georgia Tech (8-1, last game W at Vanderbilt 56-31, up next Sat. vs. Wake Forest)
-Georgia Tech continues to run right through their competition racking up another huge day on the ground against Vandy. While Jonathan Dwyer's Heisman buzz might have been a year too soon, he had a great day with over 180 yards rushing and 3 TDs. The Wreck has the inside track now to an ACC title game after the missteps by Va. Tech and Miami.
10. LSU (7-1, last game W vs. Tulane 42-0, up next Sat. at #3 Alabama)
-LSU makes their return to the tail end of the YCS after a beatdown of Tulane. After showing severe offensive ineptitude earlier this season, QB Jordan Jefferson has begun to pick up his game. Two early predictions for next week's showdown with the Tide, the 'Bama defense won't be as kind to Jefferson as the Green Wave, and the Saban Bowl should have both teams fired up.
Dropped from the YCS: USC
Just Missed Out: Penn St.
-USC drops out of the YCS after one of the worst losses of the Pete Carroll era. Of course, nobody in the national media (cough, ESPN, cough) will rush to criticize Pete Carroll and USC. Much to the chagrin of Colin Cowpattie, you can't just blame this loss on a freshman QB, it was a complete defensive breakdown that should have Trojan fans worried for the first time in a long time. Penn St. continues to be on the outside looking in, but can make a statement to the country in their showdown on Saturday with a rejuvenated Ohio State.
RSS HEISMAN WATCH
1. Tim Tebow-QB-Florida (last week 15/21, 164 yards 2 TDs, 18 rushes, 85 yards, 2 TDs)
-I suppose it's harder than it looks to leave the #1 spot vacant on the RSS Heisman Watch. Once again, Tebow's performance didn't pass the eye test with flying colors, and his numbers (at least yardage-wise) were pedestrian. But, the man did have 4 TDs against a hated rival and passed Herschel Walker for career rushing TDs in the SEC, a heck of an accomplishment. When no one steps up to claim the Heisman for an entire season, achievements like that will do a lot to help Tebow's cause.
2. Mark Ingram-RB-Alabama (last week idle)
-Unfortunately for Ingram, he has to slide to 2nd alone this week for 'Bama's bye week. But, with a marquee matchup this week against LSU, Ingram can quickly ascend to the top of the RSS Watch. It will be a tough ask against a tough LSU defense, but a 100-yard, multiple TD day would cement him as the late season favorite.
3. Golden Tate-WR-Notre Dame (4 catches, 80 yards, 2 TDs (1 rushing))
-Golden Tate makes a meteoric rise from nowhere to #3 in the RSS Heisman Watch. Even without his counterpart Michael Floyd, Tate has been one of the most dangerous weapons in college football, as evidenced by this Catch of the Year nominee this past weekend against Wash. St. (Warning: clip may contain annoying music, but it's the best I can do)
4. Colt McCoy-QB-Texas (last week 16/21, 171 yards, 1 TD)
-Colt McCoy's campaign has been stuck in neutral all season. Instead of the gunslinging numbers he needed on Saturday, McCoy was handed good field position all night with his team's stifling defense. And, with a cupcake schedule down the stretch, McCoy's campaign may be forgotten. His only hope is to pour it on heavy the last month and hope the argument of best player on best team helps his cause.
5. Jimmy Clausen-QB-Notre Dame (22/27, 268 yards, 2 TDs)
-Well, Jimmy Clausen finally didn't need a last-second drive to get the victory for Notre Dame. At least he was able to show off in front of the Notre Dame faithful...in San Antonio! That would be like Tyler Hansborough turning in another solid performance in Scranton, PA! Oh well, the Clausen to Tate connection should be good enough to get one of them an invite to NYC.
Dropping Out of the Race: Unfortunately for our mythical equipment manager, he had to bow out of the standings. It turns out he did some laundry for Lee Corso and mixed the whites with the colors. Therefore, due to his academic ineligibility, we had to drop him from the Watch...maybe next year, bud!
Keep an Eye On: LaMichael James-RB-Oregon
How could you not be impressed with the performance the freshman turned in against the vaunted Trojans on Saturday. 183 yards and a TD spoke volumes for the young man as he has quickly made people forget about suspended RB LeGarrette Blount. If he continues to push past 1000 yards rushing and pile up even more TDs, maybe James can make a very late push to be in the Heisman discussion.
That will wrap up this week's edition of the YCS and RSS Heisman Watch. It will be a busy week for the Yoders as we follow the record setting D3 men's soccer team of Ohio Wesleyan, but we'll be back tomorrow with our wrapup of the week that was in the NFL. Also, you can bet a unique preview of the NCAA basketball season is right around the corner. Until next time, it's bye for now!
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