Five lessons from a weekend where a Notre Dame QB had a mammoth day and Florida State and Miami played a classic -- and yet nobody paid attention to either and Wisconsin's band had everyone thinking of American Pie's "one time at band camp" line.1. Terrell Pryor is indeed the next big thing. Watching Ohio State's quarterback coolly lead his team on an 80-yard, game-winning drive late in the fourth quarter at Wisconsin, where the Badgers hadn't lost in 16 games, it was hard to believe this kid is just a freshman.
And maybe that's what made it so scary. On second and eight on the Badgers' 11, Pryor noticed that the Wisconsin linebackers weren't set and quickly snapped the ball, ran left and delivered the go-ahead touchdown as Ohio State won 20-17.
The numbers weren't jaw-dropping (13-of-19 passing for 144 yards and an interception and 13 rushes for 20 yards and a TD) and he still has his freshman moments, like not seeing a wide-open man until it was too late and throwing it into the dirt on a roll-out. But time is indeed on Pryor's side
2. Cinderella, thy name is Vanderbilt. Anyone doubting the Commodores (and The Señior was indeed one of them) should be changing their tune after a 14-13 win over Auburn that moved Vandy to 5-0 for the first time since 1943.
Down 13-0 early, backup quarterback Mackenzie Adams stepped in for an injured Chris Nickson and produced 207 yards and two scores, while the defense continued its second-half dominance in keeping the Tigers scoreless. In Vandy's last three games, it hasn't given up a single point after halftime and has allowed just 10 in the last two quarters this season. Oh, and that opportunistic defense that came in tied for the national lead with 11 picks snagged another on Auburn's final drive.
Can they win the SEC East? Well, there's still a trip to Georgia and Florida at home, so the odds are still against the Commodores. But everyone was saying the same thing before Saturday. At this point, they're smart and good -- and that's a scary combination.
3. The Red River Shootout should be that rare regular season clash that lives up to its hype. If you saw No. 1 Oklahoma pummel Baylor 49-17 or No. 5 Texas hammer Colorado 38-14, you watched two teams that wanted to make big, big statements heading into the latest Game of the Year. But while Ohio State-USC failed to live up to expectations, there's little doubt that this matchup will. That train of thought isn't just based on the offenses -- and with Sam Bradford and the Sooners vs. Colt McCoy and the Longhorns, there will be plenty of offense -- but when you add in a couple of impressive defenses, this will be must-see TV.
New defensive coordinator Will Muschamp has infused an SEC intensity in the 'Horns, who have seven sacks in their last two games to stand second nationally with 19. Texas is also fourth in points allowed with 11.4 per game, but it isn't all good with these guys. UT is 96th in pass defense, giving up 244 ypg, which could be an issue vs. the Sooners' fourth-ranked passing game. But given the pressure its put on passers, it's an all-or-nothing approach with Texas.
Not to be outdone, Oklahoma's defense is tied for third with 17 sacks, 11th in total defense and first in pass efficiency defense.
The offenses will get the headlines, but these defenses could make this that rare game that's as good as advertised. In an era where we're inundated with ads for flops like Frank TV, that's saying something.
4. USC re-established order in the Pac-10. There were some lingering doubts about the Trojans after the stunning loss to Oregon State that knocked them out of the No. 1 spot in the rankings. But USC answered any questions in pounding Oregon 44-10.
The middle of the Trojans defense, which the Beavers supposedly exposed, clamped down against the Ducks in giving up 60 yards and a touchdown and the offense that totaled 313 yards and 21 points in losing to OSU piled up 598 yards against the Ducks.
Maybe this team needed the wake-up call of the loss to Oregon State to get itself up for the rest of the Pac-10 season. Aside from the Ohio State game, there didn't look to be anything on the schedule to test the Trojans and the loss to the Beavers may have helped this team regain its focus. They still face an up-hill battle to make the BCS title game, but who wants to bet against this team making it?
5. The Big East is wide open -- and hand down the worst BCS conference. After the weekend's upsets (Pitt handing South Florida its first loss 26-21 and North Carolina doing the same to UConn 38-12), the conference has two teams ranked in the AP Poll (USF is 19th and Pitt is 24th) and one in the USA Today poll (the Bulls are 2oth). Meanwhile, the punching bag known as the ACC has teams ranked by the AP (Virginia Tech, Wake Forest and the Tar Heels).
The Panthers are currently in the Big East lead at 2-0, while UConn and West Virginia are right behind at 1-0. Trying to figure out who will win the league is like trying to figure out why people would pay money to see Lakeview Terrace.
The current state of the Big East only illustrates one of the biggest problems with the BCS: that the power conferences all get guaranteed bids. Who wants to see one of these Big East squads make a BCS game? Well, maybe if it's Pitt and we can put it up against another mid-major -- for sentimental reasons of course.
And maybe that's what made it so scary. On second and eight on the Badgers' 11, Pryor noticed that the Wisconsin linebackers weren't set and quickly snapped the ball, ran left and delivered the go-ahead touchdown as Ohio State won 20-17.
The numbers weren't jaw-dropping (13-of-19 passing for 144 yards and an interception and 13 rushes for 20 yards and a TD) and he still has his freshman moments, like not seeing a wide-open man until it was too late and throwing it into the dirt on a roll-out. But time is indeed on Pryor's side
2. Cinderella, thy name is Vanderbilt. Anyone doubting the Commodores (and The Señior was indeed one of them) should be changing their tune after a 14-13 win over Auburn that moved Vandy to 5-0 for the first time since 1943.
Down 13-0 early, backup quarterback Mackenzie Adams stepped in for an injured Chris Nickson and produced 207 yards and two scores, while the defense continued its second-half dominance in keeping the Tigers scoreless. In Vandy's last three games, it hasn't given up a single point after halftime and has allowed just 10 in the last two quarters this season. Oh, and that opportunistic defense that came in tied for the national lead with 11 picks snagged another on Auburn's final drive.
Can they win the SEC East? Well, there's still a trip to Georgia and Florida at home, so the odds are still against the Commodores. But everyone was saying the same thing before Saturday. At this point, they're smart and good -- and that's a scary combination.
3. The Red River Shootout should be that rare regular season clash that lives up to its hype. If you saw No. 1 Oklahoma pummel Baylor 49-17 or No. 5 Texas hammer Colorado 38-14, you watched two teams that wanted to make big, big statements heading into the latest Game of the Year. But while Ohio State-USC failed to live up to expectations, there's little doubt that this matchup will. That train of thought isn't just based on the offenses -- and with Sam Bradford and the Sooners vs. Colt McCoy and the Longhorns, there will be plenty of offense -- but when you add in a couple of impressive defenses, this will be must-see TV.
New defensive coordinator Will Muschamp has infused an SEC intensity in the 'Horns, who have seven sacks in their last two games to stand second nationally with 19. Texas is also fourth in points allowed with 11.4 per game, but it isn't all good with these guys. UT is 96th in pass defense, giving up 244 ypg, which could be an issue vs. the Sooners' fourth-ranked passing game. But given the pressure its put on passers, it's an all-or-nothing approach with Texas.
Not to be outdone, Oklahoma's defense is tied for third with 17 sacks, 11th in total defense and first in pass efficiency defense.
The offenses will get the headlines, but these defenses could make this that rare game that's as good as advertised. In an era where we're inundated with ads for flops like Frank TV, that's saying something.
4. USC re-established order in the Pac-10. There were some lingering doubts about the Trojans after the stunning loss to Oregon State that knocked them out of the No. 1 spot in the rankings. But USC answered any questions in pounding Oregon 44-10.
The middle of the Trojans defense, which the Beavers supposedly exposed, clamped down against the Ducks in giving up 60 yards and a touchdown and the offense that totaled 313 yards and 21 points in losing to OSU piled up 598 yards against the Ducks.
Maybe this team needed the wake-up call of the loss to Oregon State to get itself up for the rest of the Pac-10 season. Aside from the Ohio State game, there didn't look to be anything on the schedule to test the Trojans and the loss to the Beavers may have helped this team regain its focus. They still face an up-hill battle to make the BCS title game, but who wants to bet against this team making it?
5. The Big East is wide open -- and hand down the worst BCS conference. After the weekend's upsets (Pitt handing South Florida its first loss 26-21 and North Carolina doing the same to UConn 38-12), the conference has two teams ranked in the AP Poll (USF is 19th and Pitt is 24th) and one in the USA Today poll (the Bulls are 2oth). Meanwhile, the punching bag known as the ACC has teams ranked by the AP (Virginia Tech, Wake Forest and the Tar Heels).
The Panthers are currently in the Big East lead at 2-0, while UConn and West Virginia are right behind at 1-0. Trying to figure out who will win the league is like trying to figure out why people would pay money to see Lakeview Terrace.
The current state of the Big East only illustrates one of the biggest problems with the BCS: that the power conferences all get guaranteed bids. Who wants to see one of these Big East squads make a BCS game? Well, maybe if it's Pitt and we can put it up against another mid-major -- for sentimental reasons of course.
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