This is the 3rd week of our CFB Top 10, which is based purely on what we’ve seen on the field. Not any preconceived notions. This week definitely shook some things up, with three Top 10 games from Friday night through Saturday night. Each week feels like we’re separating contenders from pretenders, and this week was no different. This coming week includes even more, as we get Florida St @ Miami, Tennessee @ Texas A&M, Virginia Tech @ North Carolina, Alabama @ Arkansas, etc. 1. Alabama
Alabama did what they’re supposed to do… beat up on a Kentucky team that’s just not very good. The Wildcats have been significantly better since the 2nd half of the New Mexico St game, and their defense has improved dramatically, but it was not good enough to hang with Alabama. The Tide played vanilla and rested some guys that were banged up, and did what was needed to come away with a win before the most difficult stretch of the season.
Next up: Oct 8, @ Arkansas
2. Clemson
Dabo’s Tigers were almost completely written off in this ballgame because of the hype-train that is Lamar Jackson and the Louisville Cardinals, but when you’ve got the most talent in the ACC, a veteran qb, and a team that’s now won 19 consecutive regular season games… it obviously means something. Playing at home definitely helped in this one, as Louisville’s offense did not get going until the 2nd half. The defense was strong, and the offense did what was needed. I’m still not sure that Louisville wouldn’t beat them 2 out of every 3 games, but the Tigers won the game that mattered.
Next up: Oct 7, @ Boston College
3. Michigan
Jim Harbaugh and the Wolverines dominated the stat sheet against Wisconsin, and still found themselves with only a 14-7 lead with 2 minutes left in the game before an incredibly athletic interception ended the game. Michigan can win shootouts, or they can play low-scoring ground and pound games. This is a good football team that doesn’t play another ranked opponent until the final game against Ohio St. So far, Michigan’s schedule (with a Top 25 win over Colorado and a Top 10 win over Wisconsin) looks better than Ohio State’s.
Next up: Oct 8, @ Rutgers
4. Ohio St
Ohio St just obliterated Rutgers this week 58-0. There’s not much more we can say here. Their schedule looks really weak. At least Oklahoma won at TCU to make that win look a little better.
Next up: Oct 8, vs Indiana
5. Houston
The Cougars are going to continue dropping pretty soon because so many other teams have chances to prove themselves against tougher competition. Tom Herman’s bunch needs Oklahoma and Louisville to keep winning, and for somebody like Memphis (their last game on the schedule) to really step up and look like a formidable opponent for them to have a shot at the playoff.
Next up: Oct 8, @ Navy
6. Texas A&M
They racked up a 24-13 win against a stingy South Carolina team. Talk about a boring game. Muschamp coached teams always play like that, though. Great defense, no offense, and there’s not much else going on. This game was never really in doubt – even though it was tied 7-7 within the first few minutes of the ballgame. There was just a feel like A&M could put it out of reach whenever they wanted. Now comes the part of the schedule that has Kevin Sumlin on the hot seat. They’ve started out 5-0 the prior 2 seasons as well, but limped to 8-5 finishes both years. Will A&M do the same this year? We’ll see starting this week when undefeated Top 10 ranked Tennessee comes into College Station.
Next up: Oct 8, vs Tennessee
7. Washington
Chris Peterson is back. It took him 3 years to get Washington to the level that he had Boise St, but he’s rolling right now, and that team took out all of their aggression on Stanford in Seattle Friday night. A 44-6 behind-the-woodshed beating really makes everybody perk up and start to taken notice. The only problem I’m seeing is that this defense is suited to stop teams like Stanford… but are they capable of stopping these high-scoring offenses the Pac-12 is known for. You saw what Arizona was able to do to them the week before this… we’ll find out soon enough, as they’re heading to Oregon next week, and then @ Cal on Nov 5th.
Next up: Oct 8, @ Oregon
8. Tennessee
A miracle. That’s all you can say. There’s no way that game should have played out like it did. Tennessee blew a coverage on a 47 yard touchdown pass with 10 seconds left in the game that gave Georgia a 31-28 lead, and a celebration penalty, an offsides penalty, and a busted prevent defense let Tennessee leave Athens with a 34-31 win on a hail mary on the last play of the game. Is this one of those Auburn 2013 teams of destiny? Who knows… but after coming back from down double digits in 4 out of 5 games this year, they’re already battle tested. Now to see what they can do in College Station and then with Alabama coming to visit.
Next up: Oct 8, @ Texas A&M
9. Louisville
I don’t know that Louisville really hurt themselves this weekend, even with a loss. The game was in Death Valley, they came within a yard of the victory, and they played insanely well. This team is a lot of fun to watch. Without this win, though, there’s almost no chance they’ll get to the ACC Championship because they now need Clemson to lose 2 ballgames. Louisville should win out until they meet up for a huge battle at Houston on Nov 19th.
Next up: Oct 14, vs Duke
10. Miami (FL)
Is there a more meaningful coaching hire in all of college football than Mark Richt coming to Miami? This team looks disciplined and tough… and extremely well-coached. They won big at App St a few weeks ago, and won at Georgia Tech last week, and this week we figure out what they’re really made of as they host Florida St.
Next up: Oct 8, vs Florida St
