Clemson, Alabama and Ohio State stay clean as the rest of the nation fights to see who will eventually lose to the trio. Texas is back…beating teams in the Big 12! What to expect from the Pac 12 and who played better than everyone else this weekend.
Top 25:
1 Alabama
2 Ohio State
3 Clemson
4 Notre Dame
5 Georgia
6 Cincinnati
7 Oregon
8 Florida
9 Arizona State
10 BYU
11 USC
12 Texas A&M
13 Miami
14 Wisconsin
15 Indiana
16 Coastal Carolina
17 Oklahoma State
18 SMU
19 Oklahoma
20 Boise State
21 Texas
22 Michigan
23 Auburn
24 North Carolina
25 Marshall
Weekly Awards
Offensive Player of the Week: DeVonta Smith, WR, Alabama
Defensive Player of the Week: Joseph Ossai, EDGE, Texas
Freshman of the Week: Grayson McCall, QB, Coastal Carolina
Coach of the Week: Dabo Swinney, Clemson
Where I was Right – Where I was Wrong
Right: Joseph Ossai. I am a noted Texas fan but I have rarely liked their players as prospects. And for good reason over the last few years. But Ossai is different and I called it. Not many players (at Texas) have performed at the level Ossai is and he is skyrocketing up draft boards. We have been looking for a No. 2 edge rusher in this draft class since the summer, and I think it’s safe to say we can stop. But we might need to discuss who belongs in the top spot.
Wrong: I fell into the Jim Harbaugh trap again. I thought he might actually utilize and develop his new quarterback or maybe be a little creative on offense. But he didn’t do any of that. And like usual it didn’t take long for me to see I was wrong. The fact that he can’t win at Michigan says a lot about Harbaugh. With a loss to Michigan State already and the looming ass-kicking by Ohio State, Harbaugh could be on the hot seat this year and should be. With the NFL likely firing a massive number of coaches, I wonder if Harbaugh jumps back to the NFL? But his time in Ann Arbor should be over.
$100 Handshakes – Underclassmen that stood out or draft eligible players that improved their stock
Quarterbacks:
Taulia Tagovailoa, Maryland
Sam Howell, North Carolina
Spencer Sanders, Oklahoma State
Running Backs:
Breece Hall, Iowa State
Mohamed Ibrahim, Minnesota
Zamir White, Georgia
Receivers/Tight Ends:
Elijah Moore, Ole Miss
David Bell, Purdue
Tylan Wallace, Oklahoma State
Dyami Brown, North Carolina
D-Line/EDGE
Bryan Bresee, Clemson
Daelin Hayes, Notre Dame
Tommy Togiai, Ohio State
Linebackers
Antjuan Simmons, Michigan State
Baylon Spector, Clemson
Tuf Borland, Ohio State
Defensive Backs
Richard Lecounte, Georgia
Patric Surtain II, Alabama
Marcus Hooker, Ohio State
Final Thoughts:
The (much?) anticipated return of the Pac 12 comes this weekend with two of my favorite teams playing each other in Arizona State and USC. One of these teams should win the conference and should do so fairly easily after this weekend. If I’m being honest, I hope it’s Herm Edwards.
South predictions:
Arizona State
USC
Utah
UCLA
Arizona
Colorado
North predictions:
Oregon
Washington
Stanford
Cal
Oregon State
Washington State
The biggest news in college football is Trevor Lawrence and his positive COVID-19 test. Lawrence missed this past weekend’s game against Boston College and Coach Dabo Swinney has already ruled Lawrence out for the upcoming game at Notre Dame. Clemson looked good, at times, against BC but will need more out of freshman quarterback DJ Uiagalelei to stay on top of the college football rankings.
I can’t believe how well Justin Fields and Ohio State are playing. I expected them to be good but I expected them to be rusty early on and they have not. Fields is in Heisman form and the defense may be the most overlooked unit in the nation. Which is why I’m moving them up in the rankings this week despite only playing two games. But the top title goes to Alabama.
Not even COVID can slow down Alabama, and it tried. Mac Jones was supposed to come in and manage the offense while Najee Harris was running all over the SEC but Jones is the one lighting up the SEC (Harris is too) and making a strong case for the Heisman Trophy. In an odd turn of events, if Alabama can find a way to play better defense they may be unbeatable. Again/still.
Week 10 Preview:
FRIDAY – 9 BYU @ 21 Boise State, 8:45 PM, FS1
23 Michigan @ 13 Indiana, 11:00 AM, FS1
Arizona State @ 20 USC, 11:00 AM, Fox
8 Florida @ 5 Georgia, 2:30 PM, CBS
1 Clemson @ 4 Notre Dame, 6:30 PM, NBC