Distance between USC, other contenders is shrinking

Can anyone in the Big 12 give Billy Pittman and the undefeated 'Horns a real test? Bob Rosato/SI

I almost did it. After Arizona -- Arizona -- scored its third touchdown to cut USC's lead to 28-21 late in the third quarter Saturday, I turned to my colleague Luke Winn and said, "You know, maybe it's time to move Texas to No. 1."

I can't speak for other pollsters, but I'll admit to exercising extreme benefit of the doubt in keeping the Trojans No. 1 at this point in the season. I was willing to forgive a slow start at Oregon. I gave them props for the rally at Arizona State. But letting 1-4 Arizona stick around for three quarters, at the Coliseum no less -- it's clear USC is either bored, flawed or both.

However, it's tough to justify dropping a team that wins 42-21 and outgains its opponent 724 yards to 245, particularly when that team has won 27 straight games, has Matt Leinart, Reggie Bush, LenDale White, etc., etc. There's also an element of fear -- fear of looking really, really dumb after the Trojans lay 50 on Notre Dame.

I'll tell you this much, though: If college football had no memory -- i.e. if every team started the season as a complete unknown, no track record or prior knowledge about any of the coaches or players -- there's no question the No. 1 team in the country right now would be Texas. No one has offensive weapons like USC, but between Vince Young, Jamaal Charles and receivers like Ramonce Taylor and Billy Pittman, the Longhorns sure have a bunch of them. They also happen to have a dominant defense, which is more than we can say of the Trojans right now.

USC remains my No. 1, and it would take an awfully ugly performance in South Bend to change that, but it's time to acknowledge that the gap between this year's Trojans and the rest of the country might not be quite the chasm we once thought. Texas, at least in my eyes, is No. 1A.

NCAA Football Power Rankings Rank LW Team 1 1 USC Trojans (5-0) Another reason it's hard to deny the Trojans' greatness: It's not every day you see one of the nation's top-five passing teams (349.2 yards per game) also lead the country in rushing (291.2). USC boasts both the No. 8 (White) and No. 11 (Bush) rushers in the same backfield. Next game: Saturday at Notre Dame. 2 2 Texas Longhorns (5-0) Young shredded Oklahoma's mediocre secondary just like a Heisman contender should, but the beauty of the Longhorns' offense is they've finally become more than just Young. Charles' 80-yard touchdown run was eye-popping, and converted RB Taylor is starting to excel at receiver. Next game: Saturday vs. Colorado. 3 3 Virginia Tech Hokies (6-0) Over the next five weeks, the Hokies play at 4-2 Maryland, host 5-1 Boston College and 4-1 Miami and visit arch-rival Virginia. BCS conspiracy theorists are already salivating over a potential Texas-Virginia Tech Rose Bowl crisis, but if the Hokies survive that stretch unscathed, they'll have earned it. Next game: Oct. 20 at Maryland. 4 5 Alabama Crimson Tide (5-0) Matt Cadell and Ezekial Knight. You've never heard of them before, but if the Crimson Tide plan to remain undefeated, one of these two unproven sophomore receivers -- who have 10 catches between them -- is going to have to make a name for himself in Tyrone Prothro's absence. Next game: Saturday at Ole Miss. 5 6 Georgia Bulldogs (5-0) Rarely has a team replaced two important, four-year stars so seamlessly as Georgia has with David Greene and David Pollack. QB D.J. Shockley is exhibiting the same veteran poise as Greene, and DE Quentin Moses is turning in a Pollack-like season (five sacks, 10 tackles for loss). Next game: Saturday at Vanderbilt. 6 15 Penn St. Nittany Lions (6-0) You've read enough by now about Joe Paterno, Derrick Williams and the like. Let's take a moment to salute the Penn State's student section. Their organized "white out" against Ohio State was so effective that it looked like someone was shining a giant spotlight on them throughout the game. Next game: Saturday at Michigan. 7 7 Florida St. Seminoles (5-0) The remarkable evolution of FSU's offense continues, with freshman QB Drew Weatherford throwing for a season-high 351 yards and three touchdowns against Wake Forest. The only question is, what happened to the 'Noles' defense? The Demon Deacons racked up 415 yards. Next game: Saturday at Virginia. 8 8 Notre Dame Fighting Irish (4-1) Not to rain on the Charlie Weis parade, but has anyone else noticed that all the Irish's big wins (Pittsburgh, Michigan and Purdue) have come against teams that have since turned out to be frauds? If he can pull this one off, though, I'll personally affix the "genius" sticker to his forehead. Next game: Saturday vs. USC. 9 11 LSU Tigers (3-1) After some early-season sputters, coordinator Bo Pelini's defense seems to have settled into a nice groove. With a relentless pass rush in his face all night, normally steady Vanderbilt QB Jay Cutler had a miserable 11-of-32, 113-yard, two-interception performance against the Tigers. Next game: Saturday vs. Florida. 10 18 UCLA Bruins (5-0) Forget Oklahoma; Saturday's 47-40 win over Cal was the biggest of the Karl Dorrell era. The Bruins showed incredible moxie in rallying back from three double-digit deficits. With its next four games against Washington State, Oregon State, Stanford and Arizona, UCLA could soon be 9-0. Next game: Saturday at Washington State. 11 13 Miami Hurricanes (4-1) Three noteworthy events from UM's 52-7 rout of Duke: 1) Devin Hester had his first big return game of the year; 2) sophomore RB Andrew Johnson broke a 46-yard run on his first carry of the season and 3) the 'Canes held the Blue Devils to eight passing yards. Even against Duke, that's amazing. Next game: Saturday at Temple. 12 17 Texas Tech Red Raiders (5-0) Having played second fiddle to Texas throughout Mike Leach's five-year tenure, the Red Raiders will finally get their moment in the national sun two weeks from now against the 'Horns (assuming both teams win this week). Undefeated UT against undefeated Tech would undoubtedly be the game of the week. Next game: Saturday vs. Kansas State.

Read on for teams 13-25 ...