College Football Round-Up: Week Seven

Week seven of the college football season is in the books. We don't have much time for an introduction this week, so let's get right to business.

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Top 25 Scoreboard:

(A recap of all the action involving the top 25 teams in college football)

(1) Ohio State (7-0): 38     Penn State (5-2): 10

These "less-than-impressive" Ohio State Buckeyes just went out and dominated a pretty good Penn State team. Are you still jumping off this team's bandwagon? Once again, I wouldn't dare jump if I were you. Why? Because this game is a perfect example of what Ohio State can do when they are rolling. They are one of the most physically dominating football teams in the Nation on both sides of the ball and they show up when it counts. Sure, they might struggle a little bit against Central Michigan, but when the Nittany Lions came into town...the Buckeyes were prepared to go to battle with them and they definitely brought the fight right into their kitchen. Ohio State is such a talented team that when Penn State took away Cardale Jones' ability to throw the ball downfield, they just threw in J.T. Barrett and ran the read-zone option and it was "night night" for Penn State. That right there is proof alone that Ohio State doesn't just have the most talent on the football field, but they also have one of the best head coaches in college football, if not THE best.....

(2) Utah (6-0): 34     Arizona State (4-3): 18

I saw a lot of people calling for the Arizona State upset against Utah this weekend, and I didn't understand why. Are people still unaware of just how good Utah is as a football team? The Utes are just constantly getting disrespected by the college football media and it's fans and it absolutely baffles me. Why are we not taking these guys seriously? The Utes have played a pretty tough schedule and are still undefeated so far. They beat REALLY good teams in Michigan and Utah State to start out the season. Then of course, they went to Eugene and bitch slapped the Ducks. They've followed up that huge victory with wins over the previously undefeated Cal and a pretty good Arizona State team this weekend. Do you see what I'm saying? Utah is one of the best coached teams and Kyle Whittingham has these guys convinced that they can beat anyone in the country. Can we start giving these guys the respect they deserve? There's a real good chance they're making into the College Football Playoff and I'm willing to bet my yearly salary on it. 

(3) TCU (7-0): 45     Iowa State (2-4): 21

Anyone really think TCU was in trouble against Iowa State this weekend?

(4) Clemson (6-0): 34      Boston College (3-4): 17

Am I the only one who watches this Clemson team every week just waiting for them to slip? I know, I know. Every year is a new year in college football and we shouldn't expect teams to be so similar to each other year-in and year-out, but c'mon! It's CLEMSON! Every year we know what to expect from these guys.

They show up.

Look like legit National Championship contenders.

Then somewhere along the line, they stumble where they shouldn't have stumbled.

That's the definition of "Clemsoning".

You know who doesn't like the word "Clemsoning"? Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney, that's who!

Maybe this is the year for Clemson though? With one of the best players in the land (Deshaun Watson) leading the way, maybe this is finally the year the Tigers get it figured out and actually can contend for a spot in the College Football Playoff? Can we hurry up and get to that Clemson vs. FSU game on November 7 already? That game may be a battle between the two best ACC teams with a playoff spot on the line. SIGN ME UP!!!!

(5) Texas A&M (5-1): 23     (13) Alabama (6-1): 41

Alabama is winning the SEC again. Sorry folks. It's abundantly clear that Nick Saban and company once again have the best team in the SEC. I was totally buying the Texas A&M hype to. Maybe I jumped in to fast when I should've stuck my feet in first to see how cold it was? I don't know. Anyway, I personally believe that Kevin Sumlin is one of the best head coaches in the sport (I would've called him yesterday to come coach my team if I was an NFL coach) and that's probably one of the reasons I was jumping on the Aggies bandwagon this year. However, Saban once again out-coached Sumlin and now has the Tide in prime position to grab a playoff spot out of the SEC with his third straight victory over the Aggies. How about a round of applause for these guys?

(6) Baylor (6-0): 62      West Virginia (3-3): 38

Baylor scored 60 points on a mediocre team again?

Call me when these guys play someone good. Seriously though. Baylor's schedule up to this point has been pretty much the equivalent of a "laugh track" on a sitcom. People want to talk about how piss poor of a job the SEC does with it's scheduling of non-conference opponents, but what about Baylor? Here's Baylor's non-conference schedule over the last 6 seasons:

SMU (3 times)

Northwestern State

Buffalo (3 times)

Wofford

Lamar

Rice (3 times)

Louisiana-Monroe (twice)

Sam Houston State

See what I mean? Hey Baylor. How about next time you complain about missing a playoff spot...you schedule a tougher opponent in your non-conference schedule so you have a leg to stand on in your argument? Otherwise, get the hell out of the way. We want real teams that play real teams in the College Football Playoff. Not a bunch of sissies. Get out of here. 

(7) Florida (6-1): 28     (8) LSU (6-0): 35

This was one of my most anticipated games of the weekend, and it definitely lived up to the hype. Can we give some praise to new Florida head coach Jim McElwain yet? McElwain was considered by many to be a "disappointing" selection as the new head coach of the Florida Gators by pundits everywhere. Now, here we are smack dab in the middle of the season and McElwain has this Gators team ready to compete against anyone in the Nation, right now. Are we still doubting this hire? No. Florida hit a homerun with this guy and if you aren't sold on him yet, then frankly no one should care how you feel...because you're just an idiot. 

As for Leonard Fournette and LSU? Can we get a round of applause for these guys?

That's right Rock. It's just not fair. Alabama vs. LSU can't get here quick enough. Is it just me or is November 7th shaping up to be a tremendous day in the world of college football (Clemson/FSU, Alabama/LSU)?....

(9) Michigan State (7-0): 27      (12) Michigan (5-2): 23

THIS GAME!

THIS GAME RIGHT HERE!

If you missed it. Do yourself a favor. Track it down. Re-watch it. You'll thank me later. This was easily the best game of the week and if there's anyway we can get a rematch at some point this season, it needs to happen (highly unlikely, but why not wish for it?). College football rivalry games are almost always epic, but this one was TRULY EPIC! These two teams battled to the final bell. Right when it looked like Jim Harbaugh (who was done a fantastic job with the Wolverines this season) was going to walk away with a huge victory over Michigan State, a special teams blunder cost Michigan the game. It's hard to describe just how amazing of an ending it really was, you just have to see for yourselves.....

Wow! Just wow! Not only does the punter muff the punt, but he spins around and pretty much laterals it RIGHT INTO THE HANDS OF AN MSU DEFENDER WHO IS RUNNING TOWARDS THE GOAL LINE! In other words, that punter just handed the game right over to Sparty. You know why I love college football? Because of games like this. Hats off to both teams. Both teams are good and hopefully we are due for a lot more games like this as long as Jim Harbaugh and Mark D'Antonio are coaching. I'm still in shock.

(10) Florida State (6-0): 41      Louisville (2-4): 21 

#Unconquered

(14) Stanford (5-1): 56      (18) UCLA (4-2): 35

These are two of the top teams in the PAC-12 this year so you know we were going to get a good match-up on Thursday night. Don't look now guys, but Stanford is absolutely rolling. Ever since that week one loss (where Stanford had a 9 AM kick-off time against a very good Northwestern team), the Cardinal have been one of the best teams in the Nation and don't be surprised if these guys run the table and contend for a playoff spot at the end of the year. You want to know who's left on Stanford's plate?

Washington (not good)

Washington State (not good)

Colorado (not good)

Oregon (not as good as previous years)

California (good)

Notre Dame (good, but very beat up)

See what I mean? The way that this Stanford team is playing football right now, there's no way they should get another loss until a potential PAC-12 title game against Utah (as of right now). Stanford vs. Utah for the PAC-12 title? Sign me up for that game RIGHT NOW!

(15) Notre Dame (6-1): 41     USC (3-3): 31

USC is a mess right now. At the beginning of the season, they were a popular pick to make the College Football Playoff. I personally never bought into the hype, because I was skeptical about Steve Sarkisian and if he could have success at USC. Actually, as regular readers of the blog know, I was probably one of Sark's biggest critics around. Much like with Lane Kiffin, I didn't get the appeal of Sark. The guy was a fantastic recruiter, but when it came down to game-time and getting his guys ready to go out on the field and play ball....it just never worked. Sark was constantly out-coached while the head coach of the Washington Huskies and I wasn't quite sure why the USC Trojans were so adamant about handing him the keys to a nice shiny car, when he obviously never even got the Huskies out of the garage! Sark is gone now. I don't always like being right (that's a lie...), but I was 100% spot on with this one. USC is once again looking to bring in a new face to rejuvenate the program in the same fashion that Pete Carroll did in the early 2000's. Who's the right guy for USC? Here's a few names to think about....

Matt Wells (Utah State head coach). 

Kyle Whittingham (Utah head coach)

Justin Fuente (Memphis head coach)

Kevin Sumlin (Texas A&M head coach)

John Harbaugh (Ravens head coach)

Tom Herman (Houston head coach)

Hire one of those guys. It's a great hire. Unfortunately for USC fans. They'll probably end up hiring Charlie Weis.

(16) Iowa (7-0): 40      (21) Northwestern (5-2): 10

Iowa is apparently A LOT better than anyone thought.

Northwestern is apparently A LOT worse than anyone thought.

Still though. It's Iowa.....

(17) Ole Miss (5-2): 24      (19) Memphis (6-0): 37

Memphis football has arrived folks. I've been trying to warn you over the last few weeks, but no one has heeded my warning. Memphis is being called the new "Boise State" and there's a reason why. This is a good and very well-coached football team that can make a run in the College Football Playoff. Unfortunately for Memphis, all this success they are having this year is likely going to mean that "bigger football programs" looking for head coaches are likely already surrounding Memphis head coach Justin Fuente like a bunch of vultures. Why? Because a team from the American Athletic Conference isn't supposed to beat an SEC team, much less a RANKED SEC team that had a legit shot at making the CFB at the end of the year (not anymore they don't...). These Memphis Tigers are for real though and no one should be shocked if they end up undefeated at the end of the year. Outside of an away game against the Houston Cougars on November 14, the rest of Memphis' schedule is extremely winnable. There's a new show in town folks. They are called the "Memphis Tigers". Get out or get in.

(20) Houston (6-0): 42     Tulane (2-4): 7

Are you one of those football fans who doesn't pay attention to Houston because....well, they're Houston? I'm here to tell you to stop the nonsense and start paying attention to these Houston Cougars because they are a damn good football team. Former Ohio State offensive coordinator and current head coach Tom Herman is quietly building up a monster here. In just one off-season, he's transformed the Cougars from a middle-of-the-road team to one that is actually ranked in the top 25. Not only that, but if you look at the Cougars incoming recruiting class up to this point, they actually have some of the top ranked talent in the Nation committed to playing for them. That's absolutely huge for a school like Houston to be pulling big-time recruits away from power schools. How are they doing it? With excellent coaching by Herman. If the Cougars go undefeated and potentially flirt with a playoff spot at the end of the year, don't be surprised to see Herman's name pop up for almost EVERY job opening that becomes available. The only question is, will Herman take it or is he getting comfortable at Houston where the pressure to win is low and he can build up a monster with very little competition anywhere else in their conference? 

(23) Toledo (6-0): 63     Eastern Michigan (1-6): 20

(25) Oklahoma (5-1): 55     Kansas State (3-3): 0

Did you miss this game? If so, it went something like this.....

Upsets Of The Week

(There are upsets every week in college football. These are the best upsets for this week)

-Memphis Tigers over Ole Miss Rebels

I already talked about this game, but why not mention it again? Yes, it's ridiculous that a ranked SEC team loses to an AAC team, but this is a VERY GOOD AAC team. Memphis is legit and Ole Miss found that out the hard way. It's only a matter of time before the bigger conferences start to take notice of this Memphis team and offer them a spot in their conference (ARE YOU LISTENING BIG 12?!?!).

-Utah State over Boise State

This was an unexpected victory by Utah State. Boise State was considered to be head and shoulders above everyone else in the Mountain West conference, but Utah State is no patsy. The Aggies are one of the most well-coached teams in college football and Boise State found that out this weekend. Utah State is now in prime position to win the Mountain West and don't be surprised if bigger programs come calling Matt Wells' way this off-season. Wells' is one of the best coaches in college football and it wouldn't shock me at all to see someone like USC or South Carolina come crawling his way and offering him the keys to their programs.

  

Heisman Contenders

(Here are my current leaders for the Heisman trophy, in no particular order)

Leonard Fournette (RB) LSU

Ezekiel Elliot (RB) Ohio State

Trevone Boykin (QB) TCU

Seth Russell (QB) Baylor

DeShaun Watson (QB) Clemson

Dalvin Cook (RB) Florida State

Christian McCaffery (RB) Stanford

Derrick Henry (RB) Alabama

Still Undefeated

(These are the teams in college football that are still undefeated...)

LSU Tigers

Ohio State Buckeyes

Michigan State Spartans

Iowa Hawkeyes

Utah Utes

TCU Horned Frogs

Baylor Bears

Oklahoma State Cowboys

Florida State Seminoles

Clemson Tigers

Temple Owls

Houston Cougars

Memphis Tigers

Toledo Rockets

Top 25

(Here is my top 25 as it stands right now)

1. Ohio State Buckeyes (7-0)

2. Utah Utes (6-0)

3. TCU Horned Frogs (7-0)

4. Clemson Tigers (6-0)

5. Baylor Bears (6-0)

6. LSU Tigers (6-0)

7. Michigan State Spartans (7-0)

8. Florida State Seminoles (6-0)

9. Oklahoma State Cowboys (6-0)

10. Iowa Hawkeyes (7-0)

11. Alabama Crimson Tide (6-1)

12. Stanford Cardinal (5-1)

13. Notre Dame Fighting Irish (6-1)

14. Memphis Tigers (6-0)

15. Florida Gators (6-1)

16. Texas A&M Aggies (5-1)

17. Houston Cougars (6-0)

18. Oklahoma Sooners (5-1)

19. Duke Blue Devils (5-1)

20. Toledo Rockets (6-0)

21. California Golden Bears (5-1)

22. Michigan Wolverines (5-2)

23. Temple Owls (6-0)

24. Pittsburgh Panthers (5-1)

25. Ole Miss Rebels (5-2)

And that's it for week six! I hope to see everybody back here next week. Same bat time. Same bat channel.