In my preview of the Big XII, I alluded to the loss of 4 offensive linemen, and how much that would hurt OU. Well, it hurt Sam Bradford, as well. But even with the Heisman winner in a sling on the sidelines, Oklahoma blew this game. Their easily confused defense was bamboozled by BYU, and their offense committed suicide with some atrociously timed penalties (delay of game, 4th and goal on the 1. false start, 3rd and 9 on their last drive). OU's bound for the Cotton Bowl.
#2 The ACC Might Be Worse Than the CAA:
William & Mary beat Virginia, and Richmond beat Duke. The ACC was 4-6, and 3 of those wins came against I-AA opposition. Virginia Tech's competitive outing against Alabama, combined with the rest of the conference's inadequacy means Va-Tech will roll through their schedule.
#3 Alabama Is For Real:
No hangover from last year's back-to-back losses. Bama was tough on defense, and ran the ball with power. They can wear out teams with that running game. Ole Miss and LSU should beware, and so should Florida.
#4 The Mountain West Is the 4th Best Conference in I-A:
In fact, it might be #3, cuz the Pac-10 doesn't look so good after Oregon lost to Boise State, and lost a 1,000 yard rusher. #20 BYU went to Texas and beat Oklahoma, which was a huge win for the Cougars and their Conference. It's a shame that the BCS system sucks balls, because the Mountain West is capable of sending 2 teams to BCS bowls.
#5 Teams Should Be More Careful With Their Scheduling:
Do you think Oklahoma will ever again schedule a quality team to start their season with? And what's with Iowa scheduling I-AA semifinalists Northern Iowa? Didn't they learn from Michigan/App State? And why the hell is LSU starting their season thousands of miles away in Seattle? They nearly lost that game. And nobody should ever play Boise State in Boise.
#6 The Big Ten Is Shaky
Ohio State nearly lost to Navy, Iowa nearly lost to Northern Iowa, Minnesota needed OT to beat lowly Syracuse, Indiana edged Eastern Kentucky by only 6 points, Illinois was crushed by Mizzou, Wisconsin nearly blew it against Northern Illinois, and Purdue let Toledo score 31 points. Not an awful weekend, but just a play or two away from being really embarrassing for the whole conference.
#7 Notre Dame Is Decent
They trounced Nevada, and have a very easy schedule of Big Ten and Pac-10 cupcakes. Notre Dame, unfortunately, gets a +15 in their rankings, so if they're the 25th best team in the country, they'll be ranked 10th. Notre Dame has at least 8 wins already baked into their schedule (vs. Michigan, @ Purdue, vs. Washington, vs. Boston College, vs. Washington State, vs. Navy, vs. UConn, @ Stanford), so a 10 win season and BCS berth seem likely.
#8 Watch Out for Oklahoma State and Baylor
The OSU Cowboys beat a tough Georgia team, and beat them well. Meanwhile, Baylor went to North Carolina and squeezed by Wake Forest. Oklahoma State's next 4 games are easy (Houston, Rice, Grambling State, Texas A&M). And Baylor's next 3 are cupcakes (UConn, Northwestern State, Kent State). So look for OSU in the top 5, and Baylor in the top 25. Furthermore, Texas has to travel to both Stillwater and Waco this season.
#9 Football in Washington Blows
There are 2 I-A teams in Washington: Washington, and Washington State. Both have combined for 2 wins against a i-A opponent over the last 28 combined games. And both those wins came in games against each other.
#10 Cincinnati Will Win the Big East
And that's sad. The Bearcats demolished Rutgers 47-15 up in New Jersey. There's really nobody to challenge them now.
-The Commodore
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