Who Needs a Blog Poll Week 8: WTF Just Happened?

Zero means zero: Zero points, zero turnovers, zero penalties. Run game was clicking, passing was effortless, defense was stellar. Alabama is pretty damned good. Speaking of pretty damned good, FSU treated Clemson like John the Baptist, with the national televised audience presented with the Tigers' head. And, just like we thought, the Iron Bowl will likely be for the SEC-West title, with the winner facing Missouri in Atlanta (can't believe I just typed that).

You have a mess of one-loss teams, some very good (Stanford, Auburn etc), some gritting by with defense (Michigan State, Virginia Tech), some with illusory records (Oklahoma, Okie Lite, Nebraska, Louisville). You have a grouping of undefeateds that really haven't done very much (Fresno, No. Illinois, Baylor, Texas Tech). Then, there's the passel of two- and three-loss (mainly SEC) teams stocked with guys who will make an NFL fortune, but playing in meaningless bowl games (Florida, Georgia, Texas A&M, Washington etc).

Can we just hit restart on our Dynasty Mode?

O, Hai! Oregon State - Smoking their PAC12 Schedule like they were the Ducks. Only, the Beavers straight torch you through the air, like a proper West Coast team should.  Notre Dame Fighting Irish - I mean, I guess? But, seriously, fantastic DL and a physical team when they try. Never. Throw. A. Pass. You're welcome.  Arizona State: The Three Faces of Eve continues in Tempe with a pasting of the Huskies (wins over Wisconsin, USC and UDub are the best pelt collection in the PAC12). If this team ever gets some consistency, and a red zone offense not involving Grice, very dangerous.  

Be Gone! Georgia - Lackadaisical efforts catch up to you. The team was flat, the special teams were decidedly not special again, the defense folded. Aaron Murray had a mediocre day. This was a team-effort plate of butt. Of the SEC upsets, this was easily the worst. Nebraska - Given the slate's transitive losses, still haven't proven anything. Louisville Cardinals - O-fer versus the one ranked team they've played. At least Oklahoma State has a defense and Oklahoma has a decent win. This is a 7-5 team in a major conference.

Social Promotion: In an era of shiny-things-easy-distractibility, I've made market corrections to two of the very best defenses: Virginia Tech and Michigan State. VT's sole loss is to Alabama, Sparty got screwed in a one-score game at Notre Dame. Otherwise, they've taken care of business, and will win many games with defense alone. Missouri - Yes, UF was banged up along the front, but you also didn't count on seeing RFr. Maty Mauk picking the Gators' secondary apart en route to 30+ points and 500+ yards. Defense was excellent. Here's your team to beat in the SEC-E  Auburn - May not be a true top 10 in any other year, but with the conference's most solid lines on both sides of the ball, a fierce running game and an opportunistic secondary, this isn't a fluke. Gross.  Baylor - Among all the hyper-munchkin spread teams with a penchant for running it up, probably the most dynamic. Unlike Oregon, though, this team doesn't even pretend to care. I still think this is a two-loss squad when they face teams with a winning record.

Held Back: South Carolina - Outplayed and outgained Tennessee for about 55 minutes. Then, SOS outsmarted himself and Butch's guys made plays down the stretch. Worley played very well the 4^th Quarter. LSU - Abandoned the run late in the game, outcoached by Hugh Freeze. Ole Miss hit them inside often, and Mett was terrible: Three picks, two in the endzone, and the Rebs dropped two other sure gifts.  That all-world offense looks merely okay against good SEC defenses. Clemson - I'm not sure what the hell that was, but it was awful. Worst egg-laying since getting blasted by WVU. Oklahoma -don't think we didn't see the Jayhawks giving you fits. Vomit. Texas A&M Aggies - Thanks for enabling the most #blessed fan base in the country. I hope they lose 4-5 games to take the wind out of Auburn's "program-defining" win. Then again, with that defense, Aggies very well may.

Last Out: Arizona, Nebraska, Texas, Oklahoma State, and Duke / Minnesota, the latter both at 5-2. No one thinks they're worth a flying farthing, still, you win the ones on your schedule; and, it's always nice to reward the nerds.