What We Learned in College Football

Finally, we had a good weekend of shake ups and surprises. But there were also far too many bland blowouts. Teams should be allowed to face I-AA opponents in Week 1 and Week 1 only. And no team should be allowed to face two (Syracuse played Maine last week, and Colgate on Saturday). So here are the lessons...

1. MIAMI IS THE ONLY GOOD TEAM IN THE ACC

The Hurricanes blew through Pittsburgh, vanquishing their former Big East mates 31-3 on Thursday night. Meanwhile, the rest of the ACC didn't look so hot. Boston College has no offense. Georgia Tech fell to 2-2 and look very drab. Duke lost to Army. Maryland won, but let Florida International score 28. UNC did get a win, though. And I guess Florida State had a decent victory over Wake Forest. But Miami has actually gone out and performed. They're still my pick to win the ACC,

2. TENNESSEE SUCKS

There are very few "middle class" teams in the SEC. You're either Top 15 material, or you're awful. Tennessee needed overtime to beat UAB in Knoxville. That should count as a tie, or even a loss. The Vols play LSU in Baton Rouge next week, and that should be a laugher.

3. ARMY MIGHT MAKE A BOWL GAME

Every year, I root for Army to make it to a bowl game. They haven't been to one since 1996. But it'd be a great story. They already have 3 wins, so only need 3 more. As mentioned above, they beat Duke. They host VMI on October 30th, so that should be win #4. They might be able to beat Tulane. How sweet would it be, though, if win #6 came against Notre Dame in Yankee Stadium on November 20?

4. THE SEC WEST IS RIDICULOUS

In case you didn't know... I'd say that the 4 best teams in the SEC play in the West (Bama, Arkansas, LSU, Auburn). Florida might be ranked 7th, but their schedule has been soft to this point. They play Bama and LSU the next two weeks, and the SEC West will make some statements. Arkansas/Auburn is October 16th. LSU/Auburn is October 23rd. Alabama/LSU is November 6th. Auburn/Alabama is November 6th. LSU/Arkansas is November 27th. These games will all have SEC West, and therefore SEC, and therefore National Title implications.

5. NOTRE DAME REALLY SUCKS

The Irish might not make a bowl game. They're 1-3, and still have to play Pitt, Navy, Utah, and USC. They can't afford to lose at Boston College this upcoming Saturday night. And they just might, as BC usually has their number.

6. TEMPLE IS GOOD

I remember when Temple was purged from the Big East. They were a cupcake team. And although I have yet to see them play, they've been impressive. They beat UConn 30-16, then went to Happy Valley and made it a game against Penn State. They were 9-4 last year and went to a bowl game. I wouldn't be shocked if another 9 win season came again, maybe even a MAC title.

7. THE RED RIVER SHOOTOUT DOESN'T MEAN SO MUCH

Texas embarrassed themselves against UCLA, allowing 264 yards on the ground, and turning the ball over 5 times. The Longhorns may have been looking ahead to their matchup with Oklahoma. But UT also had turnover problems against Texas Tech, and that game was close until the 4th quarter. Meanwhile, Oklahoma is 4-0, but they've not been impressive. Wins are wins, but Cincinnati let the Sooners slide with a mediocre effort. The Bearcats stopped the run, Landry Jones makes arrogant passes, and if Cincy had been able to finish drives and hang on to the ball, they would have won.

Nebraska will win the Big XII. There, I said it.

8. NEVADA SHOULD BE FEARED
The biggest Nevada fans outside of DP and Reno are the good old boys behind the BCS. After a 27-13 victory over BYU in Provo, the Wolf Pack look poised to slice through the WAC, then challenge Boise State on November 26th. That game will be on the green field of Mackay Stadium in Reno.

9. GEORGIA SUCKS

UGA has been overrated for about a decade, and they always seem to get votes in the polls just because they're Georgia. But they really do suck. And to further emphasize how good the SEC West is, it was Mississippi State that beat them 24-12 on Saturday. The Bulldogs are 0-3 in SEC play.

10. WEST VIRGINIA IS THE ONLY GOOD TEAM IN THE BIG EAST

The Mountaineers kept it reasonable against LSU. They dropped from the rankings, but would be 26th in the AP poll, and 28th in the Coaches'. No other Big East team received a vote in either poll. Not even one vote.

Next week we'll learn who'll win the Big XII South (Teas vs. Oklahoma), we'll see just how much better the SEC West really is (Florida @ Alabama), we'll determine the favorite to win the Pac-10 (Stanford @ Oregon), and the Big Ten has two meetings between Top 25 teams.

-The Commodore