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SI.com college football writer Stewart Mandel shares his commentary, analysis and random tidbits on the latest developments around the country.10/08/2006 01:18:00 PM Five Things We Learned This Weekend
1) That the national title race is down to nine contenders. They are: Ohio State, USC, Michigan, Florida, West Virginia, Texas, Louisville, Tennessee and Cal. Why these nine? They are the only remaining teams (besides Boise State) that elicit enough confidence to suggest they could win the rest of their games. Obviously, most of them won’t (especially considering USC-Cal, Ohio State-Michigan and West Virginia-Louisville play each other), but if you had to bet your life savings on the matter, you’d be smart to stay within this pool.
NC State QB Daniel Evans (left) and Reggie Davis celebrate one of three touchdown passes Evans tossed in the Wolfpack's 24-20 win over Florida State.AP
2) That the SEC race just keeps getting more interesting. Apparently Georgia’s not ready to be a factor just yet, but lo and behold, here comes Arkansas. Tennessee keeps getting better. And while Florida looked like the cream of the crop Saturday and Auburn did not, don’t think for a second the Gators won’t be in for a battle Saturday night on The Plains. You can debate until the end of time whether the league is the "best" -- as you can see from the comments section, people are doing just that -- but watching the games Saturday, you couldn’t help but notice the intensity.
3) That NC State quarterback Daniel Evans is "ice." At least, that's what Chuck Amato called him in one of the more memorable postgame interviews of all time following Thursday night’s win over Florida State. The impact this sophomore has had in just two starts is incredible. Remember, the Wolfpack had been going on three years of mediocre quarterback play and had lost to Akron and Southern Miss before Evans took over two weeks ago against BC. He threw the game-winning touchdown in that one, then threw three more against the ‘Noles.
4) That 6-0 Missouri could win the Big 12 North. I realize that this isn’t Mike Leach’s finest Texas Tech team, but winning 38-21 in Lubbock still says something. Believe it or not, this was the first win by a North team over one of the "big three" South teams (Texas/OU/Tech) since 2003. I love watching Chase Daniel run that offense, and Brian Smith and the defense are apparently for real. No, this is not a Top 10 team yet, but can they beat Nebraska and win that division? Have you watched the Huskers recently?
5) That New Hampshire receiver David Ball deserves some major, major props. Admittedly, I don’t follow Division I-AA very closely -- it’s hard enough keeping tabs on 119 I-A programs -- but to break a career-touchdowns record held by none other than Jerry Rice? Are you kidding me? We’re talking about the greatest receiver of all time, here, and Ball will be able to tell his grandkids he broke one of Rice’s records. I don’t know about you, but I’m in awe.posted by Stewart Mandel | View comments |Comments:
So when Auburn has its butt handed to them, the SEC is tough and mighty, and arky is a MUCH improved team from when it was inthe first week of the season. But when Washington gives USC a scare, its beacuse they have an off game??? Wash. is much improved compared to last yearNotre Dame should still be considered in the National Championship discussionYou know, I've debated with people from just about every other conference about the SEC. I feel we have the best conference in the country. But if people don't want to acknowledge that, ok. Because there's no argument that no matter who the best is, the SEC is REALLY good. Mandel hit it on the head too. The intensity is amazing. And we're going all the way in Gainesville. Its time for the Gators to dominate again.My Top 25
1.OSU
2.Florida
3.USC
4.West Virginia
5.Michigan
6.Texas
7.Louisville
8.Tennesse
9.Cal
10.Notre Dame
11.Clemson
12.LSU
13.Georgia Tech
14.Iowa
15.Virginia Tech
16.Nebraska
17.Georgia
18.Boise State
19.Rutgers
20.Mizzez
21.Arkansas
22.Auburn
23.Oregon
24.Oklahoma
25.TCU
It might not match the AP or Coaches poll, but I think the men are finally being seperated from the boys.Stewart, the order in which you listed your 9 national title contenders interests me. I find it hard to believe you would just list them in random order. Are you secretly telling us that you think Michigan is #3 behind USC? Do you think WVU should be ranked #5, while they inexplicably continue to get 2 first-place votes every week?Hi Stewart, Mizzou indeed deserves props for going into Lubbock and waxing the Red Raiders - but where's the love for the Huskers going in to Ames, and running a Husker-like ground game along with outstanding passing by Zac Taylor? Most of the area's Big 12 "pundits", at least here in Austin (ugh, Go Big Red!), were picking Iowa State because they were playing at home and Nebraska's had trouble winning on the road the past 3 years. But I keep telling people, this ISN'T the same Huskers as the past 2 years - still not dominant like the Huskers of the 90s, but an ever-improving team with big potential. I guess I should be grateful, via Mizzou's win, that "the Big 12 North is dead to you" no longer, right?Speaking of BCS, that Tostitos commercial where players from contending teams are climbing those ladders into the sky is the lamest thing I have ever seen.Why so few writers examine the history of the BCS on the matter of a one-loss team's elimination from national title contention is beyond me. Four of the eight BCS title games since 1998 have included at least one team with a loss, and both teams in 2003's title game had one loss. Despite the common excuse for not instituting a playoff because the regular season is a playoff, one-loss teams (and even two-loss Colorado was close in 2001) are routinely in the mix for a spot in the BCS title game.
SKnotre dame does not deserve to be in contention...their schedule is weak and the won't be usc at the end of the season, plus they just look weakHey anonymous Top 25 -
How in the hell do you rank TCU in the top 25 after BYU and Utah crushed them in successive weeks. If you don't follow all of your top 25, don't even try to rank them. You're a failure.It is still hard to buy into Mizzou as they've been bad for so long and always find a way to lose some games they shouldn't. But to take a shot at the Huskers on how they've been playing lately...prepare the email filters because the Big Red masses will be up in arms and spamming you with death threats and hate mail.
At least they will be shut up next week when Freeman throws for 400 on them.
Freeman > Taylor
Freeman > Daniel
EMAW!!Stewart, Since Arkansas and Alabama are not good teams as you said, what is Auburn, even Alabama gave them a better game. At least Alabama was in the game. I guess it depends on what your definition of not a good team is. I would rather be in your definiion of not good and win the game instead of being a good loser.I think that is a correct assessment of the current situation, Stewart, but I do think that Washington is a great story this year and that has to ve combined with USC being not as dominant as in recent years.
my top five-
1- OSU
2- Florida
3- Michigan
4- Louisville/West Virginia (tough time deciding...we'll see soon)
5- USC
Sidenote- It amazes me that Notre Dame is even mentioned on this page...stunningOSU is by far the best team in the land, and unfortunately the second best without a shadow of a doubt is that "school up north". Nov 18th will be the real national championship game.
TOP 10:
OSU
UM
Florida
Tennessee
Louisville
USC
Texas
Iowa
West Virginia
Notre DameOSU is by far the best team in the land, and unfortunately the second best without a shadow of a doubt is that "school up north". Nov 18th will be the real national championship game.
TOP 10:
OSU
UM
Florida
Tennessee
Louisville
USC
Texas
Iowa
West Virginia
Notre DameNO ACC TEAMS? Someone has to win that league, and smart money says Clemson, who can be dominating at times. I looked at the Wake game like so; Wake kept Clemson off balance with some lucky turnovers, trick plays, and special teams play. Then Gaines Adams and the D woke up, and Clemson played dominantly. Proctor at QB does not make many mistakes- the game was an abberation
and Notre Dame could win out- we saw how vulnerable USC was SaturdayND's schedule is weak? They a have one of the toughest schedules in the country. check your facts. Who should they play, Sam Houston State or LA-Lafeyette? Pretty ignorant stmt.Well writers have voted and Florida is #2 in their poll. That's not a good thing for the Gators, as Notre Dame, Texas, and Auburn have all been AP #2's this season-- and all suffered embarrassing blowout LOSSES soon thereafter.
So explain this AP voters-- How can Arkansas be the undisputed #1 team in the SEC, after a blowout AT the previous #2's home, and this week they're ranked nationally behind FIVE other SEC teams including the one they just blew out?!?!?!
I guess that explains why nobody should care about the Top 25 until November, but then again if most teams didn't care about the early rankings, they wouldn't ever be relevent, right Gators?Glad you gave Missouri the props, but why are they left off the list of teams of national title contenders? If Mizzou runs the table, beating both Nebraska and Texas, then they should have as fair a shot as anyone.I get SO tired of hearing how strong the SEC is! Auburn gets waxed by Arkansas- SC blows out Arkansas 50-14. SC has gotten lucky the last two weeks but bottom line came away with 2 "W's.TCU at #25? Are you an idiot, or just a moron? Helllo? TCU has lost two straight games and have zero chance of winning their conference. You lost all credibility.Lsu at 12 after getting owned by florida and beat by Auburn who you have at 22, at least bums like you dont have a vote.Whoever put TCU as No. 25, They looked lost against UTAH and BYU in consecutive weeks. Just wanted to put that out there.The reason Notre Dame is not in the discussion is because they were completely outclassed on their home field by Michigan. If Ohio State beats Michigan, do they leap over the Wolverines into contention? I would think not. Even if Michigan does to Ohio State on its home field what they did to Notre Dame, do the Irish really deserve a rematch with Michigan? I would hope not. If Notre Dame fans want to know why they are out of the discussion, it's that game. You can't get around if you're a voter.Cal will beat USC and you eastern sporwriter's bias for eastern teams will continue to place Cal down the ladder.Incidently I'm a grad from Ann Arbor.Stewart, it is indeed notable that you listed nine of the AP top ten, leaving out only Notre Dame. Why?
Weak schedule? - Surely no weaker than West Virginia and Louisville.
"Confidence in winning out"? - It seems like USC has shown vulnerability the last two weeks.
Your logic may be reasonable, but I would like to read it.ND belongs. They don't play "directional" patsies or 1-AA's,they don't run up scores, they actually have real students who play all sports, football included, and they graduate 95% or better in ALL sports. I believe that defines "college" football at its finest!I am so sick of hearing how tough the SEC is and how it is unfair that no team will probably be able to navigate through the season undefeated and win a National Championship. Well, Aubirn did go through unbeaten two years ago so it can be done. And if you are truly the best team in the country, that means you can beat ANY other team. The SEC is what it is: one really good team (Florida), three decent to good teams (Tennessee, Arkansas, Auburn), two horribly overrated teams (LSU and Georgia), and a bunch of bad teams (Ole Miss, Mississippi State, Alabama, South Carolina, Kentucky, and Vanderbilt). I am sorry, seeing Tennessee throttle a Georgia team that should have lost to Colorado does not impress me. LSU has yet to beat a legit D-I team. And let's not forget that the new "team du jour" Arkansas got waxed at home by a USC team whose offense can be best described as pedetrian. If there was truly an elite team in this conference, they would rise up and run the table. The idea that anyone can beat anyone on any given night means one thing to me: mediocrity.Manhatter - Freeman better than Taylor? Maybe in a year or two. As for putting up 400 on the Huskers, that will be pretty tough to do while on his back. I think the Husker pass rush hasn't been missing this year, they have been saving it for just this occasion. Husker roll by 3 TD's in ManhaplessStewart-Last week you were hot on Oregon and they were smashed by Cal but you still don't care much for Cal. I should expect your lack of true respct for the PAC ,as well as Utah last year and Boise State this year.You are an eastern sportwriter. After Cal beats USC on 11/18,I bet you still will only let Cal crawl up the ladder a bit-if at all.
My top four ranking:
1.OSU (Although as a Mich grad I hate it.)
2.Florida
3.CAL
4.West Virginia
5.-20.etc.I don't have anything against Notre Dame, but at this point in the season, they don't belong in the top 15 let alone the top 10. They were blown out by a top 10 team and barely made it past an unranked team (Mich St 37 - ND 40) and now they have a 'soft' schedule to coast through for a while.
It's unbelievable that a decent win against an 0-6 team would bump ND up 3 spots from 12 to 9.
Should ND be a part of the National Championship discussion, absolutely; as an example of a great program that simply hasn't lived up to the hype and preference that has been handed to it on a silver platter.Lets stop the hate Mandel, just admit that you love florida just as much as the rest of Gator country, sure we still have a few battles left to go, but no one thought that we would manhandle LSU the way we did. Urban Meyer is up there with the best.Notre Dame doesn't play "directional schools", but name one other team in the country that plays all three service academies? those might have been tough games in the 40's but they're three easy wins these days. i'd take UNH (IAA) against Army this year.In the top 25 the conferences break down as follows
SEC 6 teams top 25 (2 top 10)
Big 10 4 teams top 25 (2 top 10 including #1)
Big 12 4 teams top 25 (1 top 10)
Big East 3 teams top 25 (2 top 10)
Pac 10 3 teams top 25 (1 top 10)
ACC 3 teams top 25 (0 top 10)
WAC 1 team top 25 (0 top 10)
And Notre Dame at #9
The SEC has roughly 1/4 of the teams in the top 25. The numbers speak for themselves. The SEC is the toughest conference with the best teams.Hey Cal Poster, how can you refer to eastern bias when discussing Cal. They go east and get waxed by Tennessee. No way you can put Cal in the National Championship race. Let me know when Cal goes outside the PAC-10 and beats a decent team. GO VOLS!!!Why does everyone keep using USC's game against Ark as proof that the SEC isn't superior. USC is an aberration within the PAC-10. Tenn and LSU stomped Cal and ASU. As I see it the PAC-10 is using the same excuse the ACC used a few years ago. That because best team beats out of conference teams regardless how the rest of their teams do, their conference is best. Top to bottom the SEC is the best the rest of the conference would do good to accept it and figure out how to match them.Thanks, Stewart, for giving a shout out to David Ball!
Hopefully this time next year, UNH's junior QB Ricky Santos will be getting some recognition as well. He's thrown 84 career TD passes in 30 starts and has Ty Detmer's D-1 record of 121 in his sights.Good points by Matt Hampton, above. I'm not an SEC hater myself--they're historically pretty beefy--but let's be fair about how they've represented themselves this year.
Flordia looks awesome.
Tenessee looks pretty awesome too.
Auburn? Tough to say. A top-25 team, for sure, but that Arkansas loss was far more embarassing than, say, Cal's loss to the Vols.
Arkansas? Also unclear. Their numbers to date haven't been spectacular (and neither have their opponents).
LSU may have been downgraded too quickly... they've only lost, after all, to currently top-5 teams... but they're clearly not the LSU of years past. We don't have enough data.
Georgia looks mediocre.
Frankly, this doesn't look like a lousy conference. It looks like a conference not much better or worse than the Big12, or the Pac10 for that matter. Period.I'm no fan of the Razborbacks, but am of the SEC. But in defense of the Hogs, when they did get thumped by USC, it was without McFadden and Mustain, who will be an elite QB...soon. As for no SEC team running the table, even with Florida's brutal schedule, I think they can do it. Florida is for real, as is Tennessee. Remember what the Vols did to Cal? Erik Ainge is the second best QB in the country behind Troy Smith. It's sad the the two best teams in the toughest conference won't play each other for the title. The SEC is without question the toughest conference!Gotta love the Props for David Ball and the UNH Wildcats!!! Ranked #1 in Div IAA and would give most Div I programs a serious run for their money w/ their spread offense....and actually would probably beat most Div I opponents..Go CATS..beat James Madison!!!!Notre Dame is always in the National Championship discussion - unless they have ohh say 3 losses. They are "NOTRE DAME".I believe it is too early to say who are legitimate national title contenders. We're only half way through the season. There are still too many teams with 0 or 1 loss that could still factor in. What if all the teams in your list somehow lose and two teams not on your list Missouri and Rutgers finish undefeated. We end up with a Missouri, Rutgers national title. Both would have to go through teams that are on your list of contenders to get there. Also what if somehow every team finishes with one lose and say UCLA wins the rest of their games and defeats USC at the end of the year. Are UCLA at 4-1 with Oregon, Cal, and USC still to play not a national title contender because of an early season hiccup against Washington? I don't think you can say who the real national title contenders are until we get to 8 or 9 games.There is mention of the SEC being "mediocre" in a previous post. Anyone who closely watches SEC football week-to-week (and keeps a close eye on other conferences) knows that - top-to-bottom - the SEC is the best conference in the country. "Top-to-bottom" is key. The SEC Champ typically has had to play 3-4 Top 15 teams during the year (i.e., look at Tennessee (who I am picking to win the SEC): Georgia, Florida, LSU and Auburn (in the SEC Championship)). NOTE: THIS year each of those teams has been a Top "10" team . . . Hmmmm. NO other conference champion will have had to run that kind of gauntlet. USC will play ONE top 15 team (Cal) and TWO in the Top 25 (Oregon - if they can remain in the Top 25 without future referee help) and Arkansas.
In short, it is PAST time to give the SEC its props (and cease and desist with giving unwarranted and inflated props to teams like Notre Dame and USC (who beat Arkansas before freshman Mustain was fully on board).The ACC is a joke. Always has been. Thanks anyway Steve.What happens when Rutgers beats both Louisville and West Virginia?Hey Stewart - Still think Chuck Amato is the "worst coach in America"?Yes, Notre Dame got destroyed at home by Michigan; however, he made this about teams that can win out the rest of their games. ND is going to coast to the last game, and anyone who thinks they can't beat a USC team that squeeked by Washington State and Washington is only kidding themselves.
As a side note, why in the world is Notre Dame's loss to a top 3 Michigan team any more concerning than Cal's blowout loss to a barely top-10 team??I agree. The SEC and ND are habitually overrated. I think the attribute most often used to describe the SEC's prowess is it depth. However, you really can't test that theory until bowl season (where ND always gets crushed). In the meantime, it would seem to me that the conference with a pretty good guarantee of a team in the Championship and arguably the two best teams in the country is the best conference (i.e. the Big Ten). After all, isn't getting to the Championship the ultimate banner of 'the best conference'?Would anyone care to venture a guess at what the USC-Arkansas score might have been had McFadden actually played in the game and Mustain been the QB? How about if the two teams played y'day? You don't think a good number of people would pick Arkansas? SC's 50-14 win needs an * by it.Stewie,
Have you seen the Huskers yet? Oh, I guess not, at least not with your good eye.Stewart, I know recent history shows that the eventual national championship is already in the top 10 of the AP, however, you shouldn't dismiss the eventual ACC champ in the championship picture. Yes, the ACC is on a major down year, but I still wouldn't rate the Big East over the ACC quite yet. You put Louisville/West Virginia in your title mix (and rightfully so), but could they go unscathed in the ACC? If the answer is no, then you will need to include one of the five ACC teams (probably Clemson) in the title mix. What if one of the teams goes on a run and steam rolls through the rest of their schedule and the ACC championship game? For a writer to dismiss a BCS conference so early in the season is an insult.September 2nd...35-18...I don't think that spanking was because of east coast bias. Thanks for playing, Cal.I haven't listened to a thing Mandel said since probably 2000. You all would be wise to do the same.I'm not one for calling people out, but You, Mandel, are a complete idiot. Not only do your rankings suck, but you make no sense. I will admit that Mizzou has as good a shot as any in the Big 12 North, but to sucker punch a Husker team that was DOMINANT over Iowa State IN Aimes is just absurd. Did you NOT watch the game? Apparently not. I can't wait for the Mizzou-NU game this year. It's going to be a doozy...but we're still only half way through this season and you're already making ridiculous comments. How did you get where you are? Does your dad run the company? Amazing.The Book
Stewart Mandel's first book, Bowls, Polls and Tattered Souls: Tackling the Chaos and Controversy that Reign Over College Football, is available now. Click here to order your discounted copy.CommentsAll user comments must be approved by the moderator before being published. Due to time constraints, comments will only be published for the first several hours following a new post.More MandelRecent Posts
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