Thursday, September 27, 2012

College Football Week 4 Review

(Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images)
EJ Manuel has just been spectacular this season. If he continues
to lead Florida State to an undefeated season, will be be this year's Heisman winner?


This past weekend in the college football, five teams in the Top 25 lost but only two of the five teams were upset. (6) Oklahoma was upset at home by (15) Kansas State. (10) Clemson fell to (4) Florida State in a high scoring battle. (18) Michigan lost to (11) Notre Dame thanks to four interceptions by Denard Robinson.  (19) UCLA was upset by unranked Oregon State at home. Finally, (22) Arizona got absolutely demolished by (3) Oregon by a score of 49-0.

New AP Top 10:
1. Alabama Crimson Tide
2. Oregon Ducks
3. LSU Tigers
4. Florida State Seminoles
5. Georgia Bulldogs 
6. South Carolina Gamecocks
7. Kansas State Wildcats
8. Stanford Cardinal
9. West Virginia Mountaineers
10. Notre Dame Fighting Irish

Top Three Performances by Team or Player:
1. Kansas State Wildcats- Led by quarterback Collin Klein, the Wildcats upset Oklahoma this past week on the road. Kansas State is 4-0 this year and look as if they are a serious contender in the Big 12.
2. Florida State QB EJ Manuel- The Heisman hopeful had another spectacular game this week, helping his team fight off a tough Clemson squad. Manuel threw for 380 yards and two touchdowns, but even ran for an additional 102 yards in the win. 
3. Oregon State Beavers- The Beavers are 2-0 and once again ranked in the Top 25 after defeating UCLA last week. In their first game, Oregon State also defeated Wisconsin and knocked them out of the AP Top 25. Quarterback Sean Mannion has done a great job leading his team in two tough wins early in the season.

Top Three Disappointments by Player or Team:
1. Michigan Wolverines QB Denard Robinson- Shoelace threw four interceptions in Michigan's second loss of the season. In a game that went down to the wire, those four turnovers seemed to be the difference maker for the Wolverines. If Robinson played smarter, Michigan escapes South Bend with a win.
2. Arizona Wildcats- After an impressive 3-0 start including a win over Oklohoma State, Arizona got shutout out big time by Oregon. The Ducks dropped 49 points on the Wildcats defense, and didn't allow a single score on their side of the field. What happened to Arizona last week?
3. Oklahoma Sooners- The Sooners got beaten on their home turf badly last week. They only managed to score 19 points and struggled running the football. It seems year after year that we predict Oklahoma to be the best in the Big 12, just to have them lose mid season once again.

Game of the Week: (2) LSU vs. Auburn
Two years ago, this game would be hands down the "Game of the Week". This year, especially with matchups like Florida State vs. Clemson, and Oklahoma vs. Kansas State, this game seemed a little questionable at first. Well, surely enough it lived up to its expectations. Despite a low scoring turnout, this game preached SEC football. Tough defenses, possible upset opportunity, and great coaching. LSU got on the scoreboard first, after tackling Auburn running back Tre Mason in the endzone, resulting in a safety. Soon after on the next drive, running back Michael Ford ran in a one yard score. Auburn answered on their next drive, as their other running back, Onterio McCalebb ran in a four yard touchdown with no time left in the first quarter. Defense dominated the second quarter, but with just a minute left to go in the half, Auburn kicker Cody Parker drilled a 40 yard field goal to put Auburn up 10-9. In the third quarter, both defenses continued to shut down the opposing offenses, but LSU caught a break and kicked a field goal to put themselves up 12-10. It turned out that Drew Alleman's 30 yard field goal would be the game winner. LSU might have won the game, but the close call was enough to drop them one spot in the AP poll. Auburn dropped to 1-3 on the season with the loss.

Next Week's Five Intriguing Matchups:
1. (9)West Virginia vs. (25) Baylor- How will Geno Smith and the Mountainners fare against their first real test of the season?
2. (12) Ohio State vs. (20) Michigan State- Ohio State has trailed in every game they've played so far. Will the Spartans be the first team to hold their lead this weekend?
3. (18) Oregon State vs. Arizona- How will the Wildcats bounce back after a rough loss to Oregon?
4. (22) Nebraska vs. Wisconsin- The Badgers are ready to return to the Top 25. Do they have what it takes to beat Nebraska in Lincoln?
5. (12) Texas vs. Oklahoma State- Is Texas back to being a national powerhouse in the college football world?

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