College Football Random Thoughts From Around the Country: CHAOS!

Fear not Tide Fans! Many a power teams took a hit this past week.

By CB969@CB969onRBR Oct 8, 2014, 7:31am CDT

1. Florida State
2. Oregon - lost
3. Alabama - lost
4. Oklahoma - lost
5. Auburn
6. Texas A&M - lost
7. Baylor
8. UCLA - lost
9. Notre Dame
10. Michigan State
11. Ole Miss
12. Mississippi State
13. Georgia
14. Stanford - lost
15. LSU - lost
16. Southern Cal - lost
17. Wisconsin - lost
18. BYU - lost
19. Nebraska - lost
20. Ohio State
21. Oklahoma State
22. East Carolina
23. Kansas State
24. Missouri
25. TCU

The dust has finally settled on one of the wildest upset-filled weekends. Three of the Top 5 and 11 of the Top 20 ranked AP teams were on the losing side but it meant different things to different teams. For some, it pretty much eliminated them from the four team playoff. For a few others, a loss is a loss but they are still very much alive. Let's review:

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Arizona 31 No. 2 Oregon 24

Unbeknownst to us, the Pac-12 would set the tone for the whole week on Thursday evening when the unranked Wildcats took the Ducks down for a second year in a row. Once again, Arizona linebacker Scooby Wright made a big play on Heisman hopeful Marcus Mariota when he stripped the ball and recovered it himself to quash any hope for an Oregon comeback. You may recall last season Wright was on the receiving end of a fantastic play when teammate Shaquille Richardson scooped a ball back into play for Wright to intercept.

IMPACT: While this loss did not completely knock the Quack Attack out of the playoff picture, it was pretty devastating. They will need to run the table and hope a bunch of other teams take multiple losses. If it comes down to one-loss Oregon vs. a one-loss team like Alabama, the fact that the Ducks lost the game at home will weigh against them. Verdict: A (DUCK) WING & A PRAYER.

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No. 25 TCU 37 No. 4 Oklahoma 33

You have to wonder if Katy Perry's declaration of love for Trevor Knight on ESPN GameDay threw the kid's concentration off a little. You may think I am kidding but I am sure it got back to him and that kind of thing can knock a 21-year-old guy off track at least a little. The Sooners QB was just 14 of 35 for 309 yards one TD and 2 interceptions.

IMPACT: Because the Big 12 chooses to live in the past with only ten member teams in the conference and thus no championship game, it kills the Sooners chances of a revenge win or at least one more high-profile win. Okie will probably have to win the Big 12 to make it to the playoff. That means defeating Baylor, K-State and Okie State and hoping that TCU loses twice. Verdict: STILL ALIVE BUT A LONG ROW TO HOE.

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No. 11 Ole Miss 23, No. 3 Alabama 17

This Rebels team is probably one of their strongest ever, eclipsing any team with a Manning at quarterback. The difference is not Bo Wallace. It is the defense the likes that has likely never been seen in Oxford. The fans stormed the field, tore down the goal posts and carried Wallace off the field, celebrating like they just won the Super Bowl. They are perfectly setting themselves up for a letdown. That said, I am predicting that the Rebs lose this coming weekend at Texas A&M.

IMPACT: Three things make this loss not as bad as some of the above defeats: 1) the loss was to a highly-ranked team; 2) it came on the road; 3) it was a close game. Bama is still in position to make the playoffs but will probably have to win out and hope Ole Miss loses (see above). The schedule is in their favor (MSU, TAMU, Auburn at home). Verdict: STILL ALIVE, NEED TO TAKE CARE OF BUSINESS.

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No. 12 Mississippi State 48, No. 6 Texas A&M 31

We all knew that MSU quarterback Dak Prescott was a special player but it was running back Josh Robinson who ran for 107 yards and two scores that put them over the top. The Bulldogs secondary was thought to be the weakness of the defense but they were able to pick off three Kenny Hill passes. The Aggies scored two late touchdowns to make it look closer than it was - very reminiscent of MSU's game with LSU and something to keep an eye on.

IMPACT: The Aggies are in a similar position that the Crimson Tide is, but their defense is atrocious. Verdict: STILL ALIVE, BUT WILL NEED TO OUTSCORE EVERYONE.

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Verdict: ELIMINATED

Utah 30, No. 8 UCLA 28 - The Bruins barely beat UVa, Memphis, and Texas. It was only a matter of time.
No. 9 Notre Dame 17, No. 14 Stanford 14 - The Trees are relegated to spoiler role... again.
Northwestern 20, No. 17 Wisconsin 14 - A bad loss to a middling team.
No. 5 Auburn 41, No. 15 LSU 7 - A second loss and QB troubles likely kill their hopes.
Arizona State 38, No. 16 USC 34 - Thou shalt not lose at home.
No. 10 Michigan State 27, No. 19 Nebraska 22 - Recall that the 'Huskers needed a miracle to beat McNeese State back in week 2.
Utah 35, No. 18 BYU 20 - The Cougars were hoping to crash the playoff picture but their schedule was iffy to begin with. Wins over an improved Virginia and traditional power albeit a bad Texas team were the highlights but BYU needed to go undefeated to even be considered.

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GRAB BAG

Florida 10, Tennessee 9 - Will Muschamp holds the villagers at bay for one more week.
Kentucky 45, South Carolina 38 - UK scores 21 unanswered fourth quarter points to clinch the upset. Is it time for Spurrier to hang it up?
Rutgers 26, Michigan 24 - Is this rock bottom for the Wolverines?
Georgia Tech 28, Miami (FL) 17 - How the heck did the Yeller Jackets make it to 5-0? Weak scheduling & a weak ACC.
East Carolina 45, SMU 24 - The Pirates are a fun team to watch. Too bad they already lost to South Carolina.

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BAMA STRENGTH OF SCHEDULE

West Virginia 33 Kansas 14 - WVU improves to 3-2.
Middle Tennessee 37 Southern Miss 31 - The Eagles are 2-4. They are not good.
FIU 38 FAU 10 - The Owls (2-4) are of no help but... FAU!

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ELIMINATED:

ARKANSAS
LSU
TENNESSEE
SOUTHERN CAL
STANFORD
WISCONSIN
NC STATE
MARYLAND
Boise
Boston College
Cal
Clemson
Colorado
Illinois
Indiana
Iowa State
Kansas
Miami (FL)
Michigan
Navy
Northwestern
Pitt
Purdue
South Carolina
Syracuse
Texas
Texas Tech
UNC
Vanderbilt
Virginia
Virginia Tech
Wake Forest
Washington State
West Virginia

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Heisman Hype

Oregon QB Marcus Mariota's hopes took a big hit in a high-profile faceplant. Against the Wildcats, he was a pedestrian 20 of 32 for 276 yards and two scores but had a crucial fumble with the game on the line.
Nebraska running back Ameer Abdullah of Homewood, Alabama had a rough day at the office gaining only 45 yards on 24 carries for a 1.9 average in the Cornhuskers loss to Michigan State. He scored twice but also fumbled once.
UGA running back Todd Gurley ran 25 times for 163 yards and two TDs through Vandy's Swiss cheese defense. He also completed an underthrown 50-yard pass on a trick play which strikes this observer as UGA trying too hard to show off.
Bama's Amari Cooper caught 9 balls for 91 yards. Is that what a Cooper "off-day" looks like???

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Extra Points

From hero to goat in ten seconds flat! Florida Gators freshman quarterback Treon Harris entered the game against Tennessee on Saturday and led the team to a victory. Mere hours later, he is under investigation after he was accused of sexually assaulting a female student on campus early Sunday morning. He has been suspended indefinitely from all team activities. What is in the water down there?
It's good to see some things never change: Georgia dismissed freshman cornerback Shaq Jones over an apparent misdemeanor shoplifting arrest. Jones is alleged to have stolen $43 worth of automotive merchandise from a Wal-Mart.
This spot has become the unofficial tracking of the celebration penalties and we had a doozy on Thursday. Arizona gets sacked on a third-and-goal with 4:34 left in a tie game. To commemorate this magnificent feat, Oregon's Tony Washington sprints out to the middle of the field, stops, puts his hands together, and bows. FLAG! First down 'Cats. Three plays later, AZ scores the winning points. For the record, Washington's little show took several seconds and was not spontaneous. Watch it here.
Our favorite former Bama running back had another big game for Colorado State (4-1). Dee Hart had 11 rushes for 143 yards and 2 touchdowns in the Rams' 42-17 romp over Tulsa.

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Krazy Kristi's "SHUT UP!" of the Week goes to the Pac-12. The conference's top four teams Oregon, Stanford, Southern Cal, and UCLA all go down. The division leaders are now Cal and Arizona!

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In case you missed it, Alabama running back Kenyan Drake is gone for the season after his gruesome leg injury against Ole Miss. Be sure to send him your love: @KDx17
Linebacker Denzel Devall will miss the next three to four weeks after having surgery for a high ankle sprain and starting center Ryan Kelly will be out "a couple of weeks" with a sprained knee depending on how his rehab goes, according to Saban.
Syracuse starting quarterback Terrel Hunt is out four to six weeks with a broken fibula. This with Florida State coming to town.
Not that it will change the outcome much but FSU could be without leading receiver Rashad Greene (concussion) and leading rusher Karlos Williams (ankle). Center Austin Barron suffered a fractured arm on the second offensive series of the game Saturday and is out indefinitely.
As if Michigan isn't having a bad enough season, running back Derrick Green will miss the rest of the 2014 season with a broken clavicle. Ouch!
Baylor starting DE Jamal Palmer is out for year after an ACL tear.

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THURSDAY & FRIDAY:

There are games on these days but none of SEC or national significance.

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 4:

SEC

Georgia at Missouri 11:00 AM CT / 12:00 PM ET CBS - Winner has an inside track to the East championship.
Louisiana-Monroe at Kentucky 11:00 AM CT / 12:00 PM ET SEC Network
Auburn at Mississippi State 2:30 PM CT / 3:30 PM ET CBS - GAME OF THE WEEK
Chattanooga at Tennessee 3:00 PM CT / 4:00 PM ET SEC Network
LSU at Florida 6:30 PM CT / 7:30 PM ET SEC Network
Charleston Southern at Vanderbilt 6:30 PM CT / 7:30 PM ET ESPN3
Ole Miss at Texas A&M 8:00 PM CT/ 9:00 PM ET ESPN ESPN - I predict an Aggies win.

NATIONAL
(some games to keep an eye on)

Texas vs. Oklahoma 11:00 AM CT / 12:00 PM ET ABC ABC - The Red River Shootout has lost some luster.
Duke at Georgia Tech 11:30 AM CT / 12:30 PM ET ESPN3- Tech is undefeated & ranked. They'll lose.
TCU at Baylor 2:30 PM CT / 3:30 PM ET ABC ABC - Two Top 10 teams take to tussling.
Oregon at UCLA 02:30 PM CT / 03:30 PM ET FOX - One of these two teams will suffer two losses in a row.
East Carolina at South Florida 6:00 PM CT / 7:00 PM ET ESPNU ESPNU - Check ECU out.
Southern Cal at Arizona 9:30 PM CT / 10:30 PM ET ESPN2 ESPN2 – The 'Cats can't keep this winning thing going, can they?
Colorado State at Nevada 9:30 PM CT / 10:30 PM ET CBS Sports Network – The McElwain & Dee Show!