After three weekends of college football, some things are becoming clear across the nation. The stock of some players, teams and leagues is up, while that of others is clearly declining….
WHO’S UP?
Mark Sanchez — USC QB threw four TDs when Trojans routed Ohio State — again — on a national stage on Saturday night. This is the third straight time Ohio State has been embarrassed in the big game, including two flops in the national title game.
Michael Crabtree — Texas Tech wideout had 8 catches for 164 yards receiving and scored three touchdowns in the #12 Red Raiders win over SMU.
Javon Ringer — MIchigan STate RB rushed for a career-high 282 yards and two TDs in 43 carries as he helped lead the 2-1 Spartans to a 17-0 win against Florida Atlantic University.
Max Hall — BYU QB tied a school record with 7 touchdown passes (six in the first half) as the #18 Cougars routed UCLA 59-0.
The SEC – Five of the top 10 teams in the AP poll are from the SEC — No. 3 Georgia, No. 4 Florida, No. 6 Louisiana State, No. 9 Alabama and No. 10 Auburn. That’s the first time that many teams from that conference have made the Top 10. Can any of these teams match up with the high-powered USC offense? Probably not, especially after No. 3 Georgia and No. 10 Auburn combined for 17 points in their two wins Saturday.
WHO’S DOWN?
Charlie Weis — “I never saw it coming,” was Weis’ quote after getting run over on the sideline by Irish defensive end John Ryan during the Irish victory over Michigan, causing Weis to suffer a torn ACL and MCL. He is expected to have surgery this week.
The Big Ten — Michigan lost to Notre Dame and Ohio State was embarrassed on national TV. How over-hyped is this conference?
The PAC-10 — UCLA, Stanford, Arizona State and Arizona all lost to Mountain West teams. UCLA was beaten 59-0 by BYU, the program’s worst loss in decades.
The Big East — Yes, South Florida overcame a 20-3 deficit to beat Kansas 37-34 to move to No. 12 in the poll from No. 19.
“This was not only a big win for the University of South Florida, it was a big win for the Big East Conference,” Nick Carparelli Jr., the Big East associate commissioner, told The New York Times.
And yes, West Virginia (1-1) is No. 21 and can improve the conference’s stock Thursday against Colorado.
But other than those two schools and undefeated UConn (3-0), the rest of the league is 3-8. Rutgers has been outscored 68-19 in losses to Fresno State and North Carolina. Syracuse was whupped 55-13 by Penn State on national TV and you have to wonder how long Greg Robinson will keep his job.
