1) The situation in Arkansas has officially turned into threat con delta. Razorback nation has come unraveled in their trust in Jeff Long as well as their support for John L Smith. Alabama laid the wood to the Razorbacks and even with Tyler Wilson out the Razorbacks looked like an FCS team.
2) USC showed how their lack of depth will hurt them through this year. They played without starting center Khaled Holmes and it showed as the Stanford defensive line dominated the game and forced Matt Barkley to make quick short throws.
Barkley looked more like a senior mid to late round player than a Heisman candidate.
3) Notre Dame went into East Lansing and controlled the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball. The Irish held Michigan State to 237 total yards and La’Veon Bell to 77 yards. This is the first time that the Irish have beaten a top-10 opponent in seven years.
4) Geno Smith once again looked like he was straight out of the NCAA 13’ game as he went 34/39 for 411 yards and 5 TD’s. Smith is putting up RG3 type numbers this season with a stat line of 66/75 for 734 yards and 9 TD’s with 0 interceptions.
5) The hype in Knoxville can now be put to rest as the Gators went into Rocky Top and outscored the Vols 27-6 in the second half. Sophomore Jeff Driskel has shown great improvement the past 6 quarters in his control of the game and OC’s Brent Pease game plan. Driskel has an above average arm and is mobile.
6) The Mountain West Conference has now lost three games to FCS teams in the past two weeks. North Dakota State, Northern Arizona, and Cal Poly have all gone on the road and walked away with a victory.
7) Clemson and Florida State both took care of business this past weekend to create one of the biggest show downs in the ACC in recent memory in Tallahassee. Tajh Boyd staked claim as the best quarterback in the ACC with 310 yards and three touchdowns. Andre Ellington is looking like a Heisman dark horse but will finally face a stout defense in the Seminoles. But yes, Clemson is still Clemson.
8) It may have only been Houston but UCLA is looking like a major contender for the Pac 12 South Title. Jim Mora has brought new life to the Bruin program and Brett Hundley is flourishing under the Mora offense. The nation’s leading rusher, Johnathan Franklin, did not disappoint with another 100 yard game. Franklin now has 541 yards on 66 carries. Don’t sleep on Franklin as another Heisman dark horse.
9) The Big Ten rebounded from a dismal week and went 10-2 this week against out of conference opponents with only Michigan State losing to Notre Dame and Indiana losing to Ball State.
10) Replacing a Heisman trophy winner is never easy and many believed Baylor would fall onto a similar fate that Auburn did after Cam Newton left but Nick Florence has filled in nicely and putting up solid numbers as the Bears won their eighth straight game this past weekend. Florence’s numbers – 45/71 for 653 yards and 7 TD’s.
-Chad Dinkins
Related articles
