My Heisman Ballot

If I had a Heisman ballot this is how I would fill it out.

Just Missed
5. Kellen Moore - Moore is the best quarterback in the country and thus is my highest ranked quarterback. Moore did everything he could possibly do to win this trophy, but with the competition he faced I just can't say he deserves it. On a more well known team, Moore would have won.

4. Toby Gerhart - I'd have no issue whatsoever if Gerhart were to win on Saturday. The gap in who deserves the trophy is the smallest since 2002 and Gerhart is in a situation very similar to Larry Johnson. Johnson had more yards (about 300) and less touchdowns (26 to 20) and played on a team that was good, but not top notch. Johnson ended in third to Palmer and Banks. I expect similar results for Gerhart, but the reason I have him at fourth is because I think the guy ahead of him is slightly better.

Making The Ballot
3. CJ Spiller - Gerhart seemed like a lock for the 2 spot or possibly the 1 and than Championship weekend happened. Carolina crushed Spiller's Heisman hopes, but Spiller deserved the invite instead of McCoy. Spiller's advantage over Gerhart isn't so much what he did to Georgia Tech, which did catch him up to Gerhart, but moreso his game breaking ability. Now this isn't dissing Gerhart, he is a game breaker which people including myself at times don't give him credit for. Gerhart carries defenders with speed, but if there's one player in the country that can truely change the game in one play, it's CJ Spiller. Consistency as a running back and Clemson's losses killed Spiller.

2. Ndamukong Suh
Disgusting. The one word I can think of to define Suh's performance in the Big 12 Championship game. 4.5 sacks as a defensive tackle is unheard of....against a Division 2 team, but against a 2nd ranked team is a performance for the ages. Suh is an unbelievable player and he still manages to put up the stats when teams key on him. I'm actually cheering for Suh to win the trophy and he deserves it, but I just couldn't give him the vote over Ingram for some reason.

1. Mark Ingram
Ingram is a picture perfect candidate for the Heisman. He is the undoubtable leader of the best team in the country. Ingram missed some time for injury and Saban never seemed to pad Ingram's stats. Ingram simply dominated the competition with the exception of a performance against Auburn. Ingram took it too the number one team in the country this week, which is what Heisman winners do.

Time for Bowl Season

It comes and goes in the blink of an eye. With the exception of Army-Navy this season is over and all college football fans have to look forward to are bowl games. Its the time of year when schools like Temple get the most attention of the season and schools like Florida State have to look back on their lackluster season and wonder what could have happened. The final week of the season ended with a bang. The Clemson-Georgia Tech game was a thriller, which sucked considering I only had one TV and had to miss portions of the Nebraska-Texas, one for the ages, game. The latter was going to come down to which team could get into field goal range, not whether they could make it. Henery and Lawrence are both very good kickers and I have full faith Henery would have made the same one Lawrence did. CJ Spiller just absolutely took it to Tech, but it wasn't enough. I've heard a lot of complaints towards the performance of Parker in the game, but how about blaming it on the defense. If I remember correctly, Georgia Tech scored on all but one possession. You have to help your offense out a little bit. And if you missed the best play of the week go youtube the end of the Illinois game. I won't spoil it if you haven't, but it could be the craziest play of the year.

Championship Week Rankings

1. Alabama
2. TCU
3. Texas
4. Boise State
5. Cincinnati
6. Florida
7. Ohio State
8. Oregon
9. Iowa
10. Penn State
11. Georgia Tech
12. Virginia Tech
13. LSU
14. BYU
15. Oregon State
16. Pittsburgh
17. Northwestern
18. Wisconsin
19. Miami
20. Oklahoma State
21. Stanford
22. West Virginia
23. Utah
24. Texas Tech
25. Nebraska

Week 13 Thoughts

It all comes and goes so fast. The regular season is "unofficially" over, as the last arguably full week of college football is over. The Big Ten was off with the exception of Illinois, but the rest of the country finished up their season this week. This turned out to be the best week of the season in my opinion. Pittsburgh, Georgia Tech, and Oklahoma State all fell victim to the rivalry game and made the BCS games more clear, as the only real question remaining is Iowa or Penn State and with Oklahoma State losing it looks to be Iowa. Mark Ingram and CJ Spiller took major hits to their Heisman campaigns, but it makes me mad that people take them off the board because of one game and than a guy like Colt McCoy is miraculously atop a lot of Heisman boards. McCoy sucked at the beginning of the season. The Heisman is given to the best player in college football for the 2009 season, not the last 4 weeks of the 2009 season. So people need to take a step back off the McCoy bandwagon. And don't even get me started if you consider Tebow a contender.

Top Players of the Week
1. Colt McCoy
McCoy is the player of the last 4 weeks, he's just not the player of the year. McCoy put up POTWOTY, which is Player of the week of the year numbers, this week. He threw for 304 yards with 4 touchdowns and no picks. That is a great day at the ballpark for any quarterback playing his rival, but he wasn't done there. McCoy had 175 yards on the ground with another touchdown. For you guys not wanting to do math, that is 479 total yards and 5 touchdowns. McCoy is peaking at the right time and the Texas defense can recover from this showing, they are the favorites to win the National Championship right now. Florida and Alabama are solid teams, but not at the level Texas is playing right now.

2. Tony Pike
Cincinnati didn't look very good on defense against Illinois. Yes, one could argue the game was worse than the 13 points the score indicated, but you could argue it should have been even closer. The Cincinnati secondary was giving Juice Williams fields of room to throw to his receivers and he still couldn't hit the pass at some points. With a little better throwing quarterback, Illinois could have torched the Bearcat secondary. Tony Pike was prepared, though, to outscore whatever the Illini offense could do. Pike was a yard short of 400, but he threw an amazing 6 touchdown passes, which outdid McCoy's total touchdown effort for the week.

3. Anthony Dixon
Mississippi held Mississippi State to less than 100 yards through the air, but they couldn't handle Dixon, as he just wore the Ole Miss defense and their strong defensive line down. Dixon along with quarterback Chris Relf torched the Ole Miss defense for 264 yards and 2 touchdowns on the ground, one of those being Dixon to go along with his 133 rushing yards. Dixon had two receptions for 12 yards to put his total yards at 145 for the day. Mississippi blanked Mississippi State 45-0 last season and put 27 on the board this season. The difference was the Bulldog offense putting up 34 points of their own this time and they added a pick 6 on defense. Mississippi State broke the game open in the third quarter and Ole Miss wasn't able to fight back.

4. Ryan Williams
Virginia looked like they were going to keep it close for awhile, but Ryan Williams and Virginia Tech were just to much for Al Groh's team and Groh's job. Groh was fired today after failing to beat the instate rivals and having another subpar season. Williams had 183 yards on the ground and had 4 touchdowns, as the freshman wonder finished the regular season. Darren Evans is going to have to fight for carries next season, cause stealing them from a guy that ran for over 1500 yards and had 19 touchdowns through the regular season isn't going to be easy. Williams should pass the 20 touchdown barrier in the bowl game, and could easily finish with 1600 yards if not 1700. Before a bad stretch cost him, Williams was a Heisman candidate and he should be a candidate next year with more experience.

5. Ealey/King
Washaun Ealey and Caleb King both torched the Georgia Tech defense and it would be unfair to give the honor to one over the other. Ealey finished with 183 yards and got his carries more consistenly but failed to score a touchdown. King had 166 with 75 coming off a long run, but he finished with a pair of touchdowns. Its fair to say both had a major impact on the upset in the Georgia state rivalry game. Their output meant Joe Cox, who has had a less than stellar season, only needed to attempt 14 passes and they kept the clock moving on a team that thrives in ball control offense themselves. King lost a fumble in the game, but it shouldn't take away from what this duo acccomplished.

Week 13 Rankings

I wanted to note there was no Heisman Contenders last week, nor will there be one this week. I will release my "pretend" official ballot after this week's games. I already said who the final three were, so Colt McCoy will not be my Heisman choice, but I'm not guaranteeing the top 3 are the final 3, but one of them will be my choice for winner.

I'm making one notable change this week in my rankings. I believe Boise State is a better team than Cincinnati. Boise State plays better defense in my opinion and Kellen Moore is better than Tony Pike. Don't even get me started on running back comparisons.

1. Texas
2. Florida
3. Alabama
4. TCU
5. Boise State
6. Cincinnati
7. Ohio State
8. Oregon
9. Iowa
10. Penn State
11. Virginia Tech
12. Oregon State
13. Georgia Tech
14. USC
15. LSU
16. BYU
17. Pittsburgh
18. Northwestern
19. Wisconsin
20. Miami
21. Oklahoma State
22. Stanford
23. West Virginia
24. Utah
25. Texas Tech

Week 12 Thoughts

This was the last full week of college football, as Illinois is the only Big 10 team that still has a game on their schedule. Iowa and Penn State are now in a beauty pageant to see who deserves a BCS bid, while other conference's are still trying to sort out their champion. Ohio State sealed the deal this weekend as sole winners of the conference, but while the SEC, Big 12, and ACC have their two championship teams, we still have 2 weeks before winners are crowned. The Pac-10 comes down to a Oregon-Oregon State that no one predicted at the beginning of the season would have those kind of implicatioins. Rivalry week is over for the Big Ten, but it is just starting for the rest of the country and it should be interesting to see if any mammoth upsets are seen, notably one in a game like Alabama - Auburn. With conference championship games decided this week is mainly about jocking for bowl position.

Players of the Week
1. Mike Mohamed, Cal
The Cal linebacker was everywhere for the defense Saturday. Mohamed totaled 10 tackles, including 0.5 TFL for a loss, but it was his game preserving interception inside the 5 yard line at the end of the game that clinched the player of the week honors for the linebacker. Cal upset a surging Stanford team and officially ended their hopes to go to the Rose Bowl. Oregon and Oregon State now have a Rose Bowl determining game next week, which will showcase the matchup of running backs LaMichael James and Jacquizz Rodgers. Cal gets back on track as they try to finish the season strong after having a couple more setbacks this season than they would have liked. One positive from this season was Vereen's performance in place of an injured Best.

2. Daryll Clark, Penn State
Clark preserved Penn State's BCS hopes as Penn State came back from a lack luster first half to dominate a Michigan State team up and down the field in the second half. Clark finished the game with 310 yards, but more importantly he didn't throw any picks to go with his 4 touchdown passes. Add in Curtis Drake had a touchdown pass, the Nittany Lions had 5 touchdowns through the air. Clark has had an up and down year, but with the other competition he'll be named my first team All-Big Ten quarterback, but he won't be named Big Ten offensive player of the year. [A hint - he's a running back] Penn State and Iowa play the waiting game now with one most likely going to a BCS game.

3. Sam Maxwell, Kentucky
Maxwell and the Kentucky Wildcats made a forgettable season for Bulldog fans even worse as Kentucky hung on to beat Georgia. Maxwell had 11 tackles, a career high, but it was his big plays that earned him player of the week honors. Maxwell added an interception to his totals and had a crucial tackle against Caleb King at the end of the game. Kentucky's performance will only add speculation to Mark Richt and his job security. Kentucky themselves have done a good job this season in taking advantage of a weak SEC East. Behind Florida, there is no one in the SEC East this season and Kentucky quietly had a solid season.

4. Larry Asante, Nebraska
Nebraska and Kansas State played for the right to play Texas in the Big 12 Championship game and the game quickly became a defensive grudge match. Nebraska held Kansas State to three points and safety Larry Asante was a big reason why. Asante totaled 10 tackles, but like Maxwell it wasn't the tackles that were pivotal. Asante had a pick for the Cornhuskers, but he also forced a fumble at the Nebraska 1 yard line that held Kansas State out of the endzone. Nebraska now gets to play Texas in the Championship game and while it is unlikely they'll win, the opportunity presents itself for them to qualify for the Fiesta Bowl if they can pull the improbable.

5. Danario Alexander, Missouri
Alexander had another great game for Mizzou. At the beginning of the year, I fully expected Jared Perry to try to replace Jeremy Maclin, but it has been Alexander that has been providing the spark for the Mizzou offense and his quarterback Blaine Gabbert has had a quietly solid first season. Alexander had 11 catches this week for 173 yards and a touchdown. Alexander is on pace to finish the season with over 100 catches, 1500 yards, and about 15 touchdowns. If he played on a better team, Alexander would be being hailed as the top receiver in the country and it's a shame he isn't. If you haven't seen Alexander yet, you need to.

Week 12 Rankings

1. Alabama
2. Texas
3. Florida
4. TCU
5. Cincinnati
6. Boise State
7. Georgia Tech
8. Ohio State
9. Pittsburgh
10. Oregon
11. Iowa
12. Penn State
13. Oklahoma State
14. Clemson
15. Virginia Tech
16. Oregon State
17. Mississippi
18. USC
19. LSU
20. BYU
21. Utah
22. Northwestern
23. Stanford
24. Wisconsin
25. Texas Tech

Heisman Contenders - Week 11

1. Mark Ingram
This is still Ingram's award to lose more than it's Spiller or Gerhart's to win. Ingram is leading an undefeated Alabama team that looks to win the National Championship. Including rushing and receiving yards, Ingram has over 1500 total yards on the season with 4 games to play, so 2000 yards should happen. Ingram has 13 touchdowns, but unlike Gerhart or Spiller, Ingram has a backup that could be starting on a lot of teams in Trent Richardson. No matter what happens it seems this is the year of the running back. At this point in the season, it would be a dishonor to the Heisman and college football in general if McCoy or Tebow were to win. Ingram, Spiller, and Gerhart should be named the 3 finalists TODAY and let them battle it out over the next couple weeks.

2. CJ Spiller
The interesting case of CJ Spiller. Spiller is the reason Clemson is slowly becoming one of the hottest teams as the team approaches the bowl season. Spiller fills up the stat columns, but not just in one category. He has 836 rushing yards and 6 TDs. Most running backs call that an average to good year, but you have to look deeper to find Spiller's impact. He has 24 catches for 382 yards and 4 touchdowns. Did I mention he has a touchdown pass and even has 1 tackles for giggles? The most impressive stat out of all though is the amazing 4 TDs he has logged on special teams. Gerhart's team might be hotter, but Stanford isn't all that much better, if at all, than Clemson so I give the edge to the more dynamic player right now.

3 Toby Gerhart
What makes this Heisman race come down to the final weeks is the fact that the guy I have at third on my "imaginary" ballot is on the hottest team and averages the most rushing yards of all of them and has the most rushing touchdowns. Statistically speaking, Gerhart is the best player in the Heisman race and in the country, but can he even garner All-American status? Gerhart is 5 yards short of 1400 yards on the season right now with a grand 19 touchdowns. What hurts Gerhart is that his yac is only 5.3 and his yard totals come from so many carries each game. But when you're a powerback that is to be expected. If you're a coach would you rather get 3, 4, or 5 yard carries or 1, 1, 2, 1, 50 yard carries. Gerhart has deceptive speed but he thrives more between the tackles than a CJ Spiller.

Since I have made a cut for the Heisman race, here are the people that deserve some recognition.

Quarterback
Kellen Moore
Case Keenum
Jimmy Clausen

Running Back
Dion Lewis
LaMichael James
Jacquizz Rodgers

Wide Receivers
Golden Tate
Jordan Shipley
Austin Pettis

Defense
Ndamukong Suh
Rahim Moore
Earl Thomas

Week 11 Thoughts

The fall of the Trojan dynasty has begun. The Washington game was considered by many as a fluke, but what it really was was a warning sign. The two massacres that were Oregon and Stanford have shown the Trojans aren't the same team they have been for the last decade. Matt Barkley may have a bright future, but he's not there yet. He got shown up this week by a fellow freshman Andrew Luck, who should be a force in years to come. The thing that has really gotten the Trojans the past couple weeks is the play of the defense. The linebacking corps is just not the same after the departure of the big 3 and even their superstar, Taylor Mays, has seen his production fall dramatically this season. Ohio State won the Big Ten this week with a victory over Iowa, but the nation should take notice what Iowa has done this season. They took an upbeat Ohio State team to overtime with what many would consider their 4th string running back and a freshman quarterback. Iowa doesn't look like a one hit wonder, but rather a future contender in an improving Big Ten. Texas is dominating a weak Big 12, Florida and Alabama are rolling towards their huge matchup, Cincinnati has a big battle against Pittsburgh coming up, and Georgia Tech's only competition in the ACC is a surging Clemson team.

Top Players
1. Toby Gerhart
Has there been a week when I haven't put Gerhart here? Andrew Luck continues to be steady at quarterback for the Cardinals and all he needs to do is be efficient. Luck may be a superstar eventually, but when your senior running back has almost 1400 yards and 19 touchdowns with three games left you don't have to do anything more. Getting to 2000 yards is probably unrealistic at this point with only 3 games and 605 yards to go, but getting to 1800 yards and 25 touchdowns seems like a very reasonable possibility. Gerhart's performance will be reflected in my Heisman contenders this week with the fall of Houston and Keenum's Heisman hopes. Gerhart has proved me wrong this season and I finally started believing in the last few weeks, but dominating USC has completely sold me.

2. Tank Carder
The sophomore linebacker was just one of many reasons TCU dominated Utah in all facets of the game and continued to show the legitimacy of the Horned Frogs. It's worth noting one of TCU's victims, Clemson, is one of the country's hottest team's behind CJ Spiller. TCU is definitely one of the top 5 teams in the country and aren't just benefitting from an "easy" non-BCS school conference schedule. I do think Boise State is overrated, but TCU is not. I fully expect TCU to win their BCS game unless they end up playing the loser of the Alabama-Florida game. Tank Carder had a pick 6 against Utah this week to seal the victory for TCU, making the game an out of reach 35-7. TCU is a fast, physical team and has a coach that can compete with the best of them.

3. EJ Manuel
Manuel wasn't spectacular and I usually reserve this section for players that put up insane stats for teams that are in contention. Manuel and the Seminoles fall into neither category, but don't discount the performance of the young gun slinger. Manuel was a highly touted quarterback a few years ago out of high school. Christian Ponder, who was having a very good season overshadowed by the deficiencies of the Florida State defense, is out for the regular season and Manuel received his first career start this past week. Playing in a pivotal game for Florida State's bowl hopes, Manuel delivered for Bobby Bowden completing 75 % for 220 yards and a touchdown (1 INT). He also showed his mobility running the ball 10 times for 45 yards and a touchdown. Whether it be Bobby Bowden or Jimbo Fisher, Florida State's coach has his quarterback of the future.

4. Dexter McCluster
If there was ever a player deserving of player of the week, McCluster is the unanimous decision. In one of the top offensive performances of the year, McCluster ran for 282 yards on the ground for 4 TDs. The wide receiver also caught 4 passes for 42 yards in one of the most dominant displays in Mississippi football history. McCluster didn't do this against a creampuff or a team with a bad defense. He did this against a well respected Tennessee defense that held Alabama and Florida's offense to much less. McCluster had a slow start to the season, but Houston Nutt has been getting him the ball more and more in the last few weeks and McCluster has shown the country why he deserves every single one of those touches. (It also doesn't hurt me that he's my fantasy wide receiver)

5. Kellen Moore
In what was widely considered as Boise State's last test, even though I think Nevada is the key game, Moore and the Boise State offense exploded on Idaho in rout to a 63-25 beatdown. The ever efficient Moore threw 22 of 32 passes complete for 299 yards and a most impressive 5-0 touchdown-INT ratio. Moore has what many would consider an insignificant 2 rushing yards, but I like mentioning that to say he had over 300 total yards of offense. Moore might play for Boise State, but if you haven't seen him he's real fun to watch. It should also be noticed that Moore's go to guy Pettis was on the receiving end of 8 of those balls for an outstanding 4 touchdowns. Pettis might quietly be making a claim for All American honors with 14 touchdowns this season.

Week 11 Rankings

1. Alabama
2. Texas
3. Florida
4. TCU
5. Cincinnati
6. Boise State
7. Georgia Tech
8. Ohio State
9. Pittsburgh
10. Oregon
11. LSU
12. Oklahoma State
13. Stanford
14. Iowa
15. Penn State
16. Clemson
17. Wisconsin
18. Virginia Tech
19. Oregon State
20. USC
21. Rutgers
22. Houston
23. Mississippi
24. BYU
25. Northwestern

Heisman Contender - Week 10

1. Mark Ingram
Ingram continues to be the most dominant player in college football. He had 144 rushing yards and 30 receiving yards on 5 receptions against a top defense in LSU. Ingram is the best player on the best team right now and I said before the season Ingram would be better than Coffee. What I didn't expect is that Trent Richardson would be just as good as Ingram was to Coffee. It's a great thing to have two great backs like Alabama has, but Ingram is clearly the best right now as he is the best in the country. If Ingram doesn't win the Heisman at this point in the season, the Heisman trophy is committing suicide, because the only other possible winners are Tebow and McCoy and they definitely don't deserve it this season.

2. Case Keenum
Keenum is probably the best player in the country and while I agree that the Heisman should be given to the best player in the country, I believe Ingram deserves the award right now as he is playing just as well as Keenum and he still has his team undefeated. There is no doubt in my mind, Keenum has demonstrated a perfect Heisman season. He puts up the crazy stats the voters like. He has more marquee moments than a voter can count, but the only problem is he plays for Houston. He went over 500 yards for the third time this season this past week and if ballots ended today he would my first team All-American quarterback.

3. CJ Spiller
I say that Spiller needs a big performance and what does he do? He delivers probably the best running performance of his career. For possibly the first time all season, he was rather average on special teams, but his running performance and his 67 yards and a touchdown in the receiving game are undeniable and Spiller deserves his position in the Heisman race. The problem for Spiller is his team's overall performance. This blog tries to predict the Heisman outcome while still showing who I believe is the winner. Do I believe Keenum and Spiller will finish 2-3? Hell no, but they clearly deserve it over McCoy and Tebow who probably will.

The rest of the pack
At this point in the season, the Heisman race is becoming more and more clear and in tradition with the Heisman committee inviting less and less to the Heisman ceremony (recently 3 instead of the classic 5) I am limiting my race at this point in the season to 3. However, this year's race is still undecided. Tim Tebow and Colt McCoy are going to get votes whether or not they really deserve them. Right now Tebow, nor McCoy are in my top 5 candidates, but for namesake the will get first place votes no matter what. Earl Thomas and Ndamukong Suh are stealing the spotlight from Taylor Mays and Eric Berry and rightly so based on this season's performance. Unlike offensive superstars who get namesake, Suh and Thomas are getting the credit over the talented safety duo. Golden Tate is a darkhorse contender at this point, but Notre Dame is doing subpar at this point. Jordan Shipley also deserves an outside shot. Shipley is clearly outplaying his quarterback, McCoy, but the name player will be the one getting the votes.

Week 10 Thoughts

Week 10 saw teams fall and teams make their mark. Stanford beat arguably the hottest team in the country in Oregon and Toby Gerhart had another outstanding day. I doubted Gerhart to start the year and really thought Luck was going to be the leader of this offense. Luck has played really well for a freshman, but Gerhart is the heart and soul of this Stanford squad. Alabama stayed undefeated with a win over rival LSU, and Ohio State massacred and entirely dominated a Penn State squad. Boise State struggled and Kansas State had a crucial win in the Big 12 North to continue their march to the conference title game. Case Keenum is the most clutch player in America and Georgia Tech barely held on for victory. USC just doesn't look the same this year, while CJ Spiller struck lightning again. Nebraska held Oklahoma to 3 points and its almost sad how far the Sooners have fallen in one season. Alabama, Florida, and Texas are the clear 1-2-3 right now and pending catastrophe will be 2 of the 3 reps in the MNC game.

Top Players
1. Toby Gerhart
Gerhart might have the leader role on how many times he has landed on this list. Despite fumbling, Gerhart was given the ball again and again against Oregon. Gerhart had a ridiculous 38 carries for an impressive 223 yards, but more importantly he got into the endzone three times for Stanford. Stanford's offense won this game. Jeremiah Masoli had a 3/0 ratio and James got his 100 yards on the ground. Andrew Luck stayed solid for Stanford, but this was clearly Gerhart's game as he ran it at almost a 2:1 ratio to Luck's throws. Gerhart will get his Heisman hype as his team works their way up in terms of national respect.

2. Cameron Heyward
Heyward was all over the field for the Buckeyes against Penn State Saturday. Ohio State with the win controls their own destiny in the Big Ten and with the injury to Stanzi, Ohio State should be bigtime favorites this week against Iowa. Heyward and the rest of the Buckeye defensive line manhandled an overwhelmed Penn State offensive line of Saturday. Heyward is a future NFL star and he played big in one of the Buckeye's biggest games of the season with 11 tackles and 2 sacks. The Buckeyes defense is proving to be one of the tops in the country with a couple shutouts this season and now holding one of the Big Ten's top offenses to a measly 7 points and that 7 points being controversial too.

3. Case Keenum
Keenum is keeping himself alive in the Heisman race, doing everything he can possibly do. This week he completed 40 passes and for a second week in a row he threw for over 500 yards, totalling 522 with 21 more on the ground from 6 carries. Keenum was interception-less and threw for an "average" 3 touchdowns. It's his clutch performances that should be getting the attention of the country though. Most Heisman winners have some marquee moment that defines them each season. Keenum just has that winning knack. Houston doesn't always win pretty, but Keenum makes sure they are in that W column at the end of the day. Keenum's team was on the brink of defeat, but a couple of clutch throws put the Houston kicker in range for the gamewinner and he didn't disappoint.

4. Zach Collaros
Well Cincinnati fans should feel about their future. Colloras is only a sophomore and he may already be a top 5 quarterback in the country after coming off the bench for another one in Tony Pike. Collaros had another absolutely monstrous week throwing for 480 yards and running for 75 more with 3 combined touchdowns. The Big East is quickly forgetting Matt Grothe, as Collaros is possibly a better passer and better runner. If Collaros had played the entire season for the Bearcats, he would be in my opinion the obvious choice for the Heisman. He has almost 300 rushing yards to go with 1200+ passing yards and he has only started for a small fraction of the team's games so far. Cincinnati is here to stay and Collaros is the reason why.

5. CJ Spiller
There were a lot of candidates this week for top players of the week honors, but I decided to reward the people in Heisman contention more as they come up big when they need to. Clemson is storming back after a so-so start to the season and it all starts with Spiller. Spiller came up big on the ground this week, an area where I have doubted him in the past, with 165 yards and a score. Spiller didn't do anything special on special teams this week, but he added 67 yards and a touchdown on three catches in the aerial game. With all these yards, Spiller has to start getting more attention nationally. Sure Clemson isn't a top team, but they are definitely playing well now and Spiller doesn't pad his stats against the Coastal Carolina's of the world.

Week 10 Rankings

1. Alabama
2. Texas
3. Florida
4. TCU
5. Cincinnati
6. Boise State
7. Georgia Tech
8. Ohio State
9. Pittsburgh
10. Oregon
11. LSU
12. Houston
13. USC
14. Oklahoma State
15. Arizona
16. Iowa
17. Penn State
18. Utah
19. Miami
20. Oregon State
21. Stanford
22. Wisconsin
23. Tennessee
24. BYU
25. West Virginia

Week 9 Heisman Contenders

1. Mark Ingram
I hold true to my word this week. Ingram remains among the elite in the Heisman race and is still the frontrunner. He has a huge test this weekend against LSU and I believe if he can get 150 yards and Alabama wins, Ingram will have the Heisman trophy at the end of the season. Ingram is clearly the top player in the country right now and if he has a dominating performance against one of the nation's stingiest defenses, he'll have no reason not to be the winner. In a year that lacks standouts, the sophomore back has established himself as the next person up to the task of competing for multiple Heismans.

2. Case Keenum
What did I say last week about Keenum? Needing to do something big? The answer by Keenum is still echoing. 559 yards and 5 touchdowns, throwing for over 80 percent. I've decided I don't care at all what team Keenum plays on. If Ingram comes up slow this week, Keenum is the clear number 2 on this list and will take over the top spot. Keenum has fallen out of the spotlight in the national media to a degree, but any college football fan knows what Keenum did and how he performed clutch, while his defense struggled. Keenum is the real. System quarterbacks throw for 300 yards, not 500+ two times in one season.

3. CJ Spiller
I could have eliminated him off the list, but I'm not going to. Spiller had 27 yards and a touchdown this week, but his team dominated Coastal Carolina by over 40. There's no reason for Dabo to risk injury to his best player when Clemson still has a shot at the ACC Championship and Spiller has his draft status being evaluated weekly. It's almost relieving to see players earning their stats in meaningful games and not just padding them against the crappy teams on the schedule. Spiller needs to make a big impact for an improved Tiger team this weekend against Florida State if Spiller wants to justify my reasoning for this move.

4. Golden Tate
Tate makes the Golden Child "golden." Jimmy Clausen has played well this year, but when you have Tate at your disposal and Michael Floyd playing half the time, it's not too hard to put up some stats. With Floyd's injury (who is coming back this week), Tate developed into a more dynamic role in the offense and has been a more receiver version of Dexter McCluster. I expect Tate to surpass 1000 yards through the air and 10 TDs this weekend, impressive stats for a receiver. Tate is playing Navy this weekend and he needs to put up big numbers against a team Temple beat.

5. Earl Thomas
I really wanted to put Daryll Clark here again after another good performance against Northwestern, playing well while the rest of the team coasted. Ndamukong Suh is getting all the love and is an All-American for sure, but his team isn't playing well at all and the defense has been giving up too many points as of late. Earl Thomas is the young leader of a suffocating Texas defense. Playing defense is hard to get credit, but Thomas has 6 picks on the season including a huge pick 6 against Oklahoma State. He has another pick 6 on his resume this season to go along with 11 passes broken up. Taylor Mays and Eric Berry will probably be first team All-Americans just on name credit, but Thomas and Iowa safety Tyler Sash are probably having the better years. And no I'm not discrediting Berry for his lack of picks, but rather complementing Sash and Thomas.

Week 9 Thoughts

It's unbelievable what Iowa is doing. Whether they're play like a top 5 team or not, they deserve to be there. They're getting computer respect, but no human respect and I have to disagree with that. What Iowa lacks in star power, they make it up with the "it" factor. Iowa can't seem to lose, not a bad quality to have at all. Alabama had the week off and Florida steam rolled a bad Georgia team. The team of the week had to be Oregon, giving USC an utter beat down and showing the country they might not just be the best team in the Pac-10, but in the country. I'm still a firm believer that if you lose, you don't deserve to be ahead of the undefeated teams at this point in the season. Teams will drop and Oregon is in the driver's seat to take their spot. These next few weeks are pivotal in shaping up the National Title race and the interesting case of the Iowa Hawkeyes.

Top Players
1. LaMichael James
Blount? Who's Blount? Oregon got the biggest break of the season by losing to Boise State and Blount throwing the punch he did. What a blessing it has been for the team. Blount didn't have the best reputation before the punch and now that he's humbled, that old presence he had is no longer in the locker room. James has taken the country by storm this season and what better way to put an exclamation point on a breakout season than putting a beatdown on the Trojans of USC. James ran for 183 yards and a touchdown as Oregon didn't just beat USC, but they took them to town. Oregon is a rising force in college football and while USC is still a top 5-10 program in the country, Oregon is becoming one too. With Kelly at the helm, this team won't be going anywhere in the near future.

2. Texas Defense
I couldn't give the award to just one player, as it was a group effort. The Texas defense destroyed a good Oklahoma State offense in rout to 41 points as a team that included 2 pick 6's. Curtis Brown and Earl Thomas each took one back on Zac Robinson and Texas's weak run game wasn't a big deal considering the defense of Texas was keeping up themselves in the scoring category with Robinson and company. Robinson was forced into 4 interceptions and Tolston was held to just 70 yards on 19 carries and the suffocating defense of Texas looks to be one of the top 5 units in the country. Texas made a statement about their title hopes.

3. Tim Tebow
Tebow had a much better game this week and while he won't rise to the top of the Heisman trophy ballots, he showed up for the first time in a while. He was an efficient 15 of 21 for 164 yards and two touchdowns through the air, but he showed his running ability again as he ran for 85 yards and two touchdowns. Georgia may be down, but this is still a rivalry game and Tebow proved he was the best player on the field Saturday. Tebow now has the career rushing touchdown record, although tainted until he gets 4 more touchdowns (I think they should count Walker's bowl game touchdowns). Florida had an equally dominating performance to Texas and the National Title race just got more interesting.

4. Case Keenum
Houston couldn't play defense on Saturday. A team that shut down Texas Tech and Oklahoma State just kept giving up points to Southern Miss. Thankfully for Houston, Keenum came to play. System quarterback or not, Keenum was 44 of 54 for a ridiculous 559 yards and 5 touchdowns. Some quarterbacks in the country take three games or possibly more to reach totals like that. Keenum may not play the country's best defenses, but 559 yards is 559 yards and that is incredible. Keenum answered my call for a big game this past weekend and he deserves not only Heisman mention, but top 3 status. Keenum is definitely one of the top 5 quarterbacks in the country this year and I would put him up against anyone.

5. Zack Collaros
Collaros has to be the best second string quarterback in the country or close to it. Cincinnati has their key player go down and all the second string does is pick up where Pike left off if not outplaying the starter. Collaros adds a mobile dimension to Cincinnati's offense, but it was his arm against Syracuse that was all so impressive. Collaros was a cool 22-28 for 295 yards and all four of Cincinnati's touchdowns this Saturday. He added 22 on the ground to put him over 300 total yards for the game. If Collaros has to keep playing, I'm going to be really tempted to put Cincinnati QB down as my All-Big East quarterback at the end of the season.

On a side note to top players this week, I just want to mention how stupid Mike Williams of Syracuse has to be. Williams is one of the top playmakers in the country and he just quits. I know this probably has to do with his suspension from a week ago, but to quit on your teammates like that is just cowardly. This will kill his NFL Draft status and tarnish his reputation and deservedly so. Good riddance Mike Williams, college football doesn't need you.

Week 9 Rankings

1. Alabama
2. Texas
3. Florida
4. TCU
5. Iowa
6. Cincinnati
7. Boise State
8. Oregon
9. Penn State
10. LSU
11. Georgia Tech
12. USC
13. Ohio State
14. Pittsburgh
15. Houston
16. Arizona
17. Wisconsin
18. Oklahoma State
19. Miami
20. Oklahoma
21. Utah
22. California
23. Notre Dame
24. Virginia Tech
25. Tennessee

Week 8 Heisman Contenders

1. Mark Ingram
Ingram will hold the top spot another week despite failing to run for 100 yards. He did however run for 99, which was almost as much as his quarterback McElroy threw for. Aiding Ingram's cause this week was the fact his usually reliable backup Richardson only mustered 18 yards on the ground, showing the strength of the Tennessee defense. Alabama is on a bye week this week, so unless someone pulls a Superman like performance, expect Ingram to sit atop the Heisman watch for another week. Ingram solidified himself as the top back this week, as Ryan Williams committed a costly fumble that led to Virginia Tech losing.

2. Tony Pike
Only in a year where Heisman candidates can a guy not lose ground by being injured. Tony Pike has been a steady force for Cincinnati and with Cincinnati still winning without him he has the benefit of his team remaining undefeated. Collaros is reportedly going to get the start this week, so this week really would kill Pike's hopes if he can't play. Pike has been a steady performer all season, but the one thing he is lacking is a truly signature performance. Without that signature performance and missing two games, Pike may be effectively eliminated from the competition this next week.

3. Case Keenum
Keenum's performance Saturday will hurt in the Heisman. Most Heisman contenders can afford going 25/36 for 233 yards and a touchdown, but Keenum can't. Keenum's schedule is easy from here on out and without at least an average of 3 touchdowns per game, he'll fall completely off the radar of some. I'll give him slack this week considering the game was well in hand and Keenum didn't have to do anything. He was still efficient with his passing percentage. Keenum might join Pike off this radar unless he does something huge this week. With big conference games coming up, the BCS schools may see some of their players step up and take these positions.

4. CJ Spiller
Spiller is an interesting case. I've said before I don't believe Spiller is a top 5, maybe not even top 10 back in the country. In terms of true running backs that run between the tackles I know he is not, but that's not why he is on this list. Clemson has a few losses this season, which puts Spiller in the same situation as Suh, but Clemson is going in the opposite direction of Nebraska and I gave the edge to Spiller. Luckily for Spiller, Clemson can still make the ACC Title game and are one upset from a BCS berth, keeping him in the spotlight. Spiller is a tremendous receiver out of the backfield and on returns he is a threat every single time. If Spiller keeps putting up 200+ all purpose yards a game, he'll get the respect from me.

5. Daryll Clark
I know many will call me homerish for this, but honestly he has just as good an argument as the others. Like Tim Tebow, Clark has a new set of receivers this season and Tebow had the luxury of Riley Cooper coming back. Tebow had a more experience line and a deeper set of backs, but who has the much better stats at this point? McCoy has an argument as his team is hot, but who has had the better overall season? Jimmy Clausen? How about Golden Tate, he is the better Heisman candidate on that team and is currently six in my Heisman Contenders. Clark had a problem with picks at the beginning of the season, but some of those were unlucky tips off receivers hands and he has thrown only 1 in the last 4. Sure 3 of his 7 are against Iowa, his one bad game but the other 4 were all against cupcakes out of conference, not from his other 3 conference games. Clark has 1884 yards already with 17 touchdowns. Add in 4 rushing touchdowns and his rushing yards put him over 2000 total yards for the season. His 17 touchdown passes are number 1 in BCS conference schools.

Week 8 Thoughts

The week started with a bang as North Carolina was dominating Florida State. Problem for North Carolina was there was too much time left on the clock and Florida State came storming back for the win. Pittsburgh continued the excitement early Saturday making a statement by destroying South Florida. Pittsburgh and Cincinnati are the frontrunners in the Big East with West Virginia the darkhorse. Georgia Tech showed they are going to make a run at the ACC Championship, while the Big 12 North continued to look pathetic with Nebraska turning the ball over 8 times in an ugly loss. Penn State and Oklahoma steamrolled Michigan and Kansas. But it was the close games in the SEC that set the mark for the day. Alabama needed a blocked field goal to defeat Tennessee as their offense continues to sputter and Florida held on to defeat a Mississippi State team that wouldn't quit. USC had to fight for their lives against Oregon State, as Taylor Mays delivered what might go down as the hit of the year (although it was illegal). Nevada and Idaho provided the fireworks for the week playing a 70-45 game, but the game of the week had to be Michigan State-Iowa. In a defensive grudge match, Michigan State broke it open with a hook and ladder and scored with time for one final Iowa push. With how the game was going it looked over, but Ricky Stanzi and Iowa seem possesed this year and Stanzi led his troops to down the field to position themselves for one play at the endzone. Stanzi threw a perfect pass on the slant route and Iowa won as time expired. The National Title race would be a disaster if Iowa, an SEC team, and Texas win out, but right now I just don't see that happening.

Players of the Week
1. Terrence Cody
I'm only stating the obvious here. Cody might have performed the most memorable play of the season to date (unless you consider Ricky Stanzi's throw the best). The monster in the middle blocked Tennesee's game winning field goal try, but he didn't do this just once but twice considering he had blocked another kick earlier in the quarter. Cody preserved Alabama's undefeated and moved them one step closer to the SEC Championship game, which with a win could propel them to the National Championship game. In a game where the offense sputtered, McElroy had 120, Ingram was under 100, and Richardson did nothing to spell him, Alabama's defense won the game. They gave Crompton over 250 yards through the air but they didn't break and won the game.

2. Allen Bradford
No it's not Stafon Johnson or Joe McKnight, it's Bradford who carried the load for the Trojans this week. Without Bradford's breakout performance, USC could have 2 losses right now. Bradford had 147 on the ground with over 9 yards a carry. Bradford's touchdowns were clutch and allowed USC to hold to beat the resilient Beavers from Oregon State. USC's offense has stepped it up, as it is clear the defense isn't close to the defense of last season. Last year the strength was in the linebackers, but this year it is in the secondary, which caused problems playing Quizz Rodgers. The defense gave up 36 points, but it doesn't matter since Bradford and company put up 42. The only problem USC has in the backfield is getting everyone enough carries and letting the backs get into a groove.

3. Colt McCoy
Right when McCoy has been officially eliminated from everyone's Heisman list, he pops right back up. McCoy looked like the McCoy of old against the Sean Weatherspoon led Missouri defense slicing them up for 269 yards on 26-31 throwing. Whittaker led Texas with only 36 yards on the ground, but that was a result of what McCoy was accomplishing through the air. If Texas wants to win a National Championship, they'll have to become more multi-faceted. With their air game looking improved and McCoy and Shipley always being threats, look for the pressure to be on the backs especially with defenses keying on the pass in the coming weeks. McCoy isn't at the top of Heisman lists, but with an open race he could rise faster than most would think.

4. Colin Kaepernick
I really thought Nevada was going to be a better team this season than how they have played this far. They finally stepped it up this week though. Idaho became bowl eligible for the first time in years last week, but the Nevada offense just ran circles around their defense. Kaepernick had an okay 178 yards through the air with 2 touchdowns, but it was his work in the ground game that turned the rout on. On just 15 carries, Kaepernick sliced his way to 230 yards and 4 touchdowns against a team that thought they were one of the season's surprises. If Nevada can keep up this offensive play and improve their defense look out Boise State. This could be Boise State's last challenge.

5. CJ Spiller
Big time players play their best in big time games. I haven't been on the Spiller bandwagon at all this season, but he deserves his props this week against Miami. I've never considered Spiller a very good running back and still don't to a degree, but he is great out of the backfield and a tremendous returner. Spiller only had 81 on the ground but he had 6 catches for over 100 yards and a touchdown in the receiving game. His most important play was his kickoff return for a touchdown. Clemson had to play this game in Miami and easily could have gotten rattled by a Miami score, but Clemson held strong, did what they had to do and won the game in overtime capitalizing on Miami's mistakes. If Clemson can win some more games, which they are capable of, they can make the ACC Championship game and Spiller will get his votes.

Week 8 Rankings

1. Alabama
2. Florida
3. Texas
4. Iowa
5. TCU
6. Cincinnati
7. Boise State
8. LSU
9. USC
10. Oregon
11. Penn State
12. Georgia Tech
13. Oklahoma State
14. Virginia Tech
15. Ohio State
16. Houston
17. Pittsburgh
18. Arizona
19. Wisconsin
20. Miami
21. Mississippi
22. Oklahoma
23. Utah
24. West Virginia
25. Notre Dame

Week 7 Heisman Contenders

1. Mark Ingram
At this point in the season, it would take a major screw up by Ingram to lose the Heisman. His team seems to be connecting on all cylinders and he's carrying the offense on his shoulders. Alabama is probably the best player in the country and that never hurts the cause for a Heisman candidate. Ingram should surpass the 1000 yard mark either this week or next. Ingram's next major test is LSU, which should be the hardest for him before Alabama plays Florida in the SEC Championship game. Ingram's 200+ yard performance on the ground against South Carolina has set him apart from the rest of the pack, considering he ripped most of those yards after initial contact and when the game was close in score. Those are signs of a tough, clutch player.

2. Tony Pike
Pike could take a fall after this week, but Heisman Contenders rewards year to date performance and not projected output. News broke recently that Pike will not start this week, rather his backup Collaros. Collaros is a pretty fun quarterback to watch, being much more mobile than Pike, but Cincinnati will miss Pike's arm if he doesn't see action in the game. Pike has 1633 yards on the season through the air and a 15/3 ratio at the midway point through the season. If he continued that rate (meaning he played every game), he'd end up with about 3500 yards and 33 touchdowns, which is impressive but still not close to the numbers of Sam Bradford a season ago. Cincinnati has to continue to roll if Pike has any shot at this award.

3. Ryan Williams
Ryan Williams gets a break from Heisman Contenders this week. Although his team lost, Williams still managed 100 yards (including a big 66 yard run) despite playing will an illness. Williams continues to be the most exciting freshman (true or redshirt) in the country over Matt Barkley. It should be interesting to see how many carries Darren Evans will get next season with Williams performing at such a high level. Through the first seven games of the season, Williams has 999 all purpose yards and 11 touchdowns, amazing statistics for a guy that wasn't even supposed to start this season. Hokie nation knew how good Williams could be, but most of the nation didn't.

4. Case Keenum
Houston won big again, keeping Keenum in the hunt for the trophy. Keenum is number one in the country in passing yards per game, a statistic expected from him if he wants the trophy. Through just six games he has 2501 yards and 19 touchdown passes. Unlike Pike, Keenum will approach the numbers of Bradford from a season ago, but will his conference hold him back from winning the trophy? Keenum has already proved he can beat the big boys. Oklahoma State hasn't had the season they wanted with injuries and suspensions, but they keep managing to win. Houston also beat Texas Tech, a team that seems to be clicking right now and although Sheffield wasn't the quarterback against Houston, must people won't remember that little detail.

5. Tim Tebow
The interesting case of Tim Tebow. The purpose of this blog entry at the beginning of the season was to show who I thought was most deserving of the trophy, but as we enter the back half of the season the purpose changes to projecting who will win the Heisman trophy. As much as the media says Tebow is the Heisman favorite or one of the front runners at this point, what justification do the voters have for that vote? Yes, they can say Tebow does enough for his team to win and that they are ranked as the top team in the nation in some polls, but that argument better supports Mark Ingram. Tebow is riding reputation at this point and until he makes a statement, he does not deserve this trophy.

Week 7 Rankings

1. Alabama
2. Florida
3. Texas
4. Iowa
5. Cincinnati
6. Boise State
7. USC
8. LSU
9. Miami
10. Oregon
11. Penn State
12. TCU
13. Oklahoma State
14. Georgia Tech
15. Virginia Tech
16. Ohio State
17. BYU
18. Houston
19. Texas Tech
20. Boston College
21. Arizona
22. Wisconsin
23. Pittsburgh
24. Arkansas
25. Kansas

Week 7 Thoughts

Week 7 was the best week yet of football this season. All the top teams seemed to play tight games and went down to the wire. Kansas, Ohio State and Virginia Tech will both exit the top 10 this week. The rest of the Top Ten; Alabama, Florida, Texas, Boise State, and USC all struggled to win their games. LSU had the week off and Cincinnati was the lone team to cruise to victory and they took the victory at a price with Pike going down. The Heisman race now has a frontrunner. Mark Ingram ran for over 200 yards in the South Carolina game and is the country's best player right now. Suh and Williams got hit with their team's losing. Conference play is rolling and college football is in full blast. The National Title picture instead of becoming clearer is just foggier with Boise State and Cincinnati continuing to win.

Top Players
1. Mark Ingram
Alabama was a one man show Saturday night in a closer than expected game against South Carolina. McElroy and Jones struggled in the game, but Ingram picked up the slack. Ingram has not only dethroned Jahvid Best as the best running back in the country, but he has officially taken the title as the best player in the country. Ingram plays better in the bigger games and he carries his team more than I dare say Tebow and McCoy do. Tebow has running backs at his disposal and McCoy has Jordan Shipley outshining him. Ingram had 246 yards on the ground and 23 receiving, which was 23 more yards through the air than Julio Jones did. Ingram is Alabama and possibly a future National Champion.

2. Josh Nesbitt
Nesbitt hasn't had the best year at the helm for Georgia Tech throwing the ball. He threw a pick and only completed one of seven passes versus a stingy Virginia Tech defense. Problem for the Hokies was that one completion was a 51 yard play to Thomas and Nesbitt was dominant in the ground game going for 122 yards, but more importantly 3 touchdowns. In a game that Tyrod Taylor was supposed to be the better mobile back and Ryan Williams was a Heisman candidate, it was Nesbitt who looked the best on the ground. Scoring 28 points on a Hokie defense and even more so considering the time consuming offense Georgia Tech runs.

3. Matt Barkley
Barkley has a very similar background to his counterpart from Saturday, Jimmy Clausen. Barkley's future may have been predicted as brighter before the game, but it was Clausen that was getting the Heisman attention. Barkley came out of the game champion in two regards. First, the freshman guided his team to victory, the most important part to either quarterback. Second, it was Barkley and not Clausen who dominated the statline. Barkley threw for a smooth 380 yards to go along with his 2 touchdowns. No one will mention that Notre Dame's pass defense sucks, but I'll give Barkley the credit just for the situation and how he handled it.

4. AJ Wallace
I'm not usually one to be a homer and put Penn State players up here, but Wallace deserves the mention. Wallace didn't dominate a stat book with his 4 tackles, but it's what he doesn't get credit for in the statbook. First, one his tackles had major meaning. He combined with Navorro Bowman on a fourth down goal line stand to beat the ball carrier to the outside and tackle him and preserve the shutout for the Nittany Lions. But the reason Wallace is on here is for what he did against Eric Decker. Decker is one of my favorite players to watch, as he can make the hard catch even when he is well defended. Well Decker didn't get much opportunity Saturday. Wallace had Decker's number and didn't allow Decker to catch a ball under his watch. Decker's only catch came on a decent enough schemed play that found both safeties misplay a interception and getting split by Decker.

5. Texas Defense
Someone had to win the Red River shootout and it was the Texas defense that stepped up to the task. The first thing they did was knock Heisman winner Sam Bradford out of the game and force Oklahoma to rely on the freshman Landry Jones. Jones had 250 yards through the air, but it did little good and he threw two picks. The impressive part of the defensive performance was Texas' stifling run defense. DeMarco Murray and Chris Brown were expected to be one of the top running duos in the country, but behind the offensive line they couldn't do anything. Brown had 23 yards, but Murray and the team's total were both negative. McCoy didn't have his best day, but the defense allowed him to still win the game.

Heisman Contender - Week 6

1. Ryan Williams
Williams is performing well for Virginia Tech and if he was name Darren Evans, he would be at the top of everyone's list right now, not a doubt in my mind. Being a freshman kills one's Heisman campaign, but being the playmaker on a Top 5 team is criteria number 2 for a Heisman winner. Being a quarterback is criteria 1, but every now and than that's ignored. Williams biggest competition at the moment also happens to be a running back. It's that kind of year.

2. Mark Ingram
If Mark Ingram didn't get the flu, he would be the clear Heisman favorite. His stats suffered as a result and he hasn't been one to pad his stats against crappy opponents. Trent Richardson is killing Ingram's Heisman hopes and that is a good thing if you're an Alabama fan. Ingram is still the primary runner, but in the same way Coffee was last year with Ingram getting significant second team reps. Alabama is rolling through their schedule now and if Ingram can stay healthy, he will end the running back drought for the Heisman.

3. Ndamukong Suh
I'm all for a defensive player winning the Heisman and if the Heisman was given today, I would given Suh my imaginary first place vote. The reason he is at number 3, you might ask? The list is Heisman contenders. Suh is a contender and in my opinion the best candidate right now, but I don't believe he is the front runner because it is more difficult to sustain defensive statistics than offensive statistics. Suh will not win this award without ridiculous statistics and the crappy part of playing defensive tackle is that you can play a stout defensive game, but not have any stats. Some of the best defensive tackles in the country never get noticed, but Suh's athletic ability is keeping him in this race.

4. Tony Pike
Pike's Heisman campaign could be coming to an end. It was announced a surgery option will be considered Monday for the injury to the forearm he took against South Florida. I'm going to give him credit for what he's done to date this season though. I really believed Cincinnati was overrated, but I was wrong even though I still believe they're getting too much credit. Don't get me wrong, with Pike leading the offense they're one of the better teams in the country. But National Championship worthy, no way in the world. The Big East doesn't provide much competition at all. Look at how Auburn looked great because of a win over Big East power West Virginia and than they fell flat to Arkansas.

5. Case Keenum
Keenum's reign on this watch is coming to an end. Keenum led his team to a win over another BCS school in Mississippi State, but despite his 4 touchdown passes he threw two picks with one being returned. Keenum runs a fun offense to watch, but Houston just doesn't have the schedule to get Keenum his credit and realistically he isn't going to throw for 500 yards and 6 touchdowns every single week. Keenum gets the last spot this week only because I want to go against media favoritism and support a player who has played better than Tim Tebow this season. This contest shouldn't be a popularity race.

Week 6 Thoughts

College football is finally starting to gain some stability and staying power this week. There were not any monumental upsets and the one that "shocked" some people was one I have been waiting for all season: Arkansas over Auburn. Auburn has the opportune SEC schedule, one that looks no worse than, gasp, a Big Ten schedule. Arkansas plays the tougher schedule, but was clearly the better team led by Ryan Mallett and one of the most underrated offenses in the country. This week saw several top 10 teams take the week off and the other teams in the top 10 did fairly well and there were not too many scary moments for the teams at the top. Florida had the big win of the week by beating LSU, but as I have been saying LSU is vastly overrated and it just goes to show Florida is not the team everyone expected at the beginning of the season. Do not get me wrong, Florida very well could go undefeated and win the National Championship (I say they lose to Alabama in the SEC Championship), but they are no where near the caliber of 2005 Texas and USC and other recent teams that went down as some of the best. Pollsters still voting Florida number 1 have Tebow-syndrome, Alabama is clearly playing the best football in the country. The team possibly playing the second best is the team Alabama beat to open the season. Iowa and Kansas maintained their perfect seasons this week, but both showed me that their time is limited.

Five Stars of the Week
1. Jonathan Crompton
You got to hand it to the guy. There is no one in college football the past two years taking as much heat as Crompton has. Even when he has one good play, people are already anticipating how he'll mess up the next one. This week Tennessee had Georgia. Now Georgia is not the same Georgia people are accustomed to, but they are still a decent team and were the lone team to knock off South Carolina, a task Ole Miss could not accomplish. The game was expected to be close because of both team's defenses. Most people would assume Tennessee giving up 19 points would be an automatic loss, but credit Kiffin for sticking with the senior this season despite opposition. Crompton was very efficient at 20-27 for 310 yards and threw for four touchdowns. Georgia's defense has not lived up to expectations, but I promise you they are not that bad. Credit the Tennessee quarterback.

2. Mark Ingram
Ingram continues to come up big for Alabama. Glen Coffee leaving has not done anything to the Alabama run game except possibly upgrading it. That is not because Coffee was not a very good back himself, it's just it gives an experienced Ingram to run the ball more and Trent Richardson a chance to play too. Mississippi has a strong defensive front and were doing a good job of getting pressure of McElroy. With McElroy not playing his best, Ingram took control of the game rushing for 172 yards on 28 carries, scoring along the way and adding 16 receiving yards. Richardson added 40 yards behind him too. With Alabama playing the best football in the country right now, Ingram could find himself rejoining the Heisman race soon and being there until the end.

3. Ross Homan
Granted, Homan was not part of the 14 defensive points Ohio State put on the board from pick 6's, but he was by far the best player on the field Saturday. Homan had 15 tackles, two sacks, and a forced fumble as he roamed the field for the Buckeyes. It seemed like every play Homan was in on the tackle. The most impressive part of the entire Buckeye defense's play was the fact they did not get any time to rest. They scored 3 non-offensive touchdowns and at one point played about the first 12 minutes of the 3rd quarter without a break and without breaking down. Defense won Ohio State the football game and is the reason Ohio State is in the driver's seat to win the Big Ten. Homan was the lead man Saturday stopping a John Clay that went off on Minnesota the previous week and holding him to just 59 yards on 20 carries or less than 3 ypc.

4. Thaddeus Lewis
NC State has had a very up and down year to this point, but despite the wins and losses the problem has been the consistency of the offense. Blame this game on the defense and the fact Thaddeus Lewis did not get the message. The Duke quarterback shocked the Wolfpack, throwing for 459 yards, 5 touchdown passes, 1 touchdown run, and 0 interceptions to lead a disrespected Duke offense up and down the field. Duke is a different team under Cutliffe and give him a couple years to get his own recruits and Duke could start making noise in the ACC. They are at .500 6 games into the season and almost shocked Virginia Tech recently, an abrupt change from the Duke football tradition, or lack there of. If Lewis can play half as well as he played here, Duke will win a few more games this season and possibly go to a bowl game. Maryland, Wake Forest, and Virginia are all winnable games for the Blue Devils.

5. Steven Sheffield
Yes, there were probably more important performances this week than Lewis and Sheffield. Yes, Sheffield was playing a less than stellar defense and playing in a very good offensive system. However, both performances were impressive despite the situation, both in conference games and not against some lower level team. Sheffield replaced an injured Taylor Potts and looked flawless leading the Texas Tech offense to a devastating win over Kansas State. Despite an interception, Sheffield threw for 490 yards and 7 touchdowns. He also added 19 yards on the ground. Many fans like what they're seeing from Sheffield and some want him to take Potts place even when Potts is healthy again. Graham Harrell may be gone, but Texas Tech is showing the system never dies with quarterback changes. The tradition continues.

Week 6 Rankings

1. Alabama
2. Florida
3. Texas
4. Boise State
5. Virginia Tech
6. Kansas
7. USC
8. Ohio State
9. Cincinnati
10. LSU
11. Miami
12. Iowa
13. Oregon
14. Penn State
15. TCU
16. Oklahoma State
17. South Florida
18. Arkansas
19. Oklahoma
20. Georgia Tech
21. BYU
22. Nebraska
23. Houston
24. Wisconsin
25. South Carolina

Heisman Contenders - Week 5

1. Tim Tebow, Florida
It's hard to believe that a player can jump to the top of the Heisman ballot without even playing, but Tebow has done that. Ryan Williams would have taken the top spot this week, but his Hokies struggled to put away a less than stellar Duke team. Tebow's Heisman hopes are on the line this weekend if he does not find a way onto the field and his team manages to lose. Tebow has not played near spectacular this season, but neither has anybody else and everyone is looking for a player to finally step up and claim Heisman front runner status. Tebow's concussion is the most talked about story in college football right now and for once the Tebow hype is warranted. This is a top 5 matchup with major national title implications and Florida is very vulnerable against a raucous LSU crowd and a team that seems to have Urban Meyer's number. Big players come up big in big games. Time for Tebow to suit up and play.
Season Stats - 44/68/643 6/1, 55/271/5

2. Ryan Williams, Virginia Tech
Williams did not have the best game last week, but he still is not getting enough credit from the nation. Virginia Tech was the popular preseason pick for a team to fall flat on their face this season and Williams is not allowing for any of that. Virginia Tech has fought back from an early season loss to Alabama to beat the hottest team in the country in Miami. Williams has been the catalyst for the offense and Virginia Tech fans hope Tyrod Taylor's improved passing continues over the next couple months. Virginia Tech struggled to beat Duke this past week and Williams had his worst ypc of the season. He rushed for 83 yards but on 24 carries and failed to catch a pass for the first time this season. His team still won though, thus resulting in him being ahead of Case Keenum.
Season Stats - 108/575/8, 6/120

3. Case Keenum, Houston
It was a rough week for the Heisman Contenders last week as their teams went a combined 1-3 with the one win almost being a huge upset. Keenum put up a ridiculous statline in the loss and from all indications if Houston had a half-hearted effort defensively they could have won this game. Keenum threw an unbelieveable 76 passes and completed 51 of them for 536 yards with 5 touchdowns and no turnovers. If Keenum can win out and continue to put up a statline like this, he should creep back into the Heisman race in terms of the media, but he'll take a major fall in most people's eyes with the loss. I still give the guy credit, as he is the most deserving player in the country of the award at this point.
Season Stats - 144/210/1696 13/2, 18/52/3

4. Tony Pike, Cincinnati
Stadium Stories has yet to jump on the Cincinnati bandwagon. Most people put them in the Top 10, but I still have them at 14 and believe their run has a lot to do with their schedule rather than their play. However, in a year where teams are struggling and college football is down in general, Cincinnati is playing very well. Pike is the ring leader of the offense and has come from being a fifth stringer on the verge of being cut a couple seasons ago to being one of the best quarterbacks in the country. Pike did not have one his best days this past Saturday against Miami (OH), but I will give him the benefit of the doubt since a lot of other Heisman Contenders struggled this week.
Season Stats - 116/174/1493 13/3, 14/41/2

5. Golden Tate, Notre Dame
With the lackluster performances of the country's best lately, Colt McCoy could find his name here soon and underdog Toby Gerhart, a back to back top performer of the week, could find his name here soon. That is not to take away from Golden Tate who is becoming this Notre Dame offense. I gave Clausen credit in the performers of the week, but I feel Tate is the better Heisman candidate. Wide receivers struggle to garner Heisman hype unlike the other skill positions, but Tate has the Wildcat position helping him majorly in the stats category. If he performs like he did last week against some decent teams, Tate could jump all the way to the top of this whole race. If you didn't hear he caught 9 balls for 244 yards and touchdown and added 31 yards on the ground in a single carry against a Washington defense that shut down USC.
Season Stats - 33/602/4, 13/93/1

Week 5 thoughts

In my return to the armchair this week, college football went its first week without a top 5 upset, but their is an asterisk next to that since only 3 of the 5 teams played. College football saw a week without Superman or Colt McCoy, but there were still highs and lows in the week. The Michigan Cinderella story stalled, as Michigan State got back on track after a lackluster start to the season. Penn State awakened a week late, as the the team they beat struggled against Arkansas State. USC steamrolled California and Oregon continues to prove they are a legit threat to win the Pac-10 along with the darkhorse, Stanford. Houston went down despite Case Keenum completing 51 passes for over 500 yards. Go figure. Miami effectively ended Oklahoma's national title hopes and LSU passed their first test of the season. Auburn is still undefeated and Cincinnati is quietly making a run at the big one. Duke almost pulled a big upset, while Virginia pulled an upset of their own. College football is alive and well, upsets aplently and comebacks arising, but the one think still completely uncertain is the Heisman trophy winner. A star has yet to be established.

5 Stars of the week

1. Taylor Mays - This award could go to the entire USC defense for their utter shutdown of Kevin Riley, Jahvid Best and company, but Mays was the ring leader. Mays picked off Kevin Riley on Cal's first possesion and the Trojans did not look back from there. California was limited to 3 points and the USC offense performed admirably putting up 30 points. Best was a frontrunner for the Heisman trophy going into the matchup but comes out of it barely in the running. He was limited to 47 yards on 14 carries and was a nonfactor in the game. Kevin Riley was held in check only completing 15 of 40 passes and threw for under 200 yards.

2. Javarris James - James did not account for any of Miami's points in their victory over Oklahoma, but he was a big reason they won the game. His 50 yard run in the second quarter ignited the Miami offense and a couple plays later, the Hurricanes were celebrating a touchdown pass of Jacory Harris. In his other 14 carries, Harris ran for 100 and had a slick 10 ypc on the day. It looked like it was going to be an ugly day for the Miami offense early as Harris struggled on his way to two interceptions, but he picked it up and James helped the cause. Oklahoma is done in terms of the national title race and Miami is definitely making its case. Yes, they have a loss, but does a team in the country face a tougher 4 game stretch than Miami just got through with. With the bulk of thier season behind them, Miami should find themselves in an ACC title game with possibly more on the line.

3. Toby Gerhart - For the second week in a row Gerhart finds his name on this list. His quarterback, Andrew Luck, is just getting better by the week and Stanford is starting to make some noise in the Pac-10 with a couple early season wins in conference. Gerhart ran for 134 yards this week and tacked on three touchdowns as Stanford passed their first test in conference play downing Rick Neuheisal and UCLA. Stanford has another winnable game against Oregon State next and if they can win that, Gerhart is going to start getting some mention for the Heisman trophy. Gerhart lacks the speed of a Joe McKnight, but the guy just gets it done. He's powerful, but decepetively fast at the same time. Jim Harbaugh is doing a terrific job with the talent he has at Stanford.

4. Jimmy Clausen - Notre Dame does not win the games smoothly, but to the disbelief of the country they are 4-1. After the Michigan loss was magnified and Notre Dame always seeming to be on the losing end to start games, it is hard to believe they only have 1 loss right now but they do. Sure Golden Tate has a huge role in that, but do not undermine the job Clausen has done. Losing Michael Floyd could have been devastating, but all Clausen did against a Washington defense that performed well against LSU and USC was throw for 422 yards and 2 TDs. He was also great in the clutch giving the Irish a touchdown in overtime, which was the gamewinner. Golden Tate caught 9 of Clausen's balls and can be called co-MVP with 244 receiving yards.

5. John Clay - Wisconsin and Minnesota did not disappoint in their game. Zach Brown was struggling at running back for the Badgers, but Clay stepped up and ran all over the Golden Gophers. He had 184 yards and 3 TDs and just dominated the game. This spot however would go to Eric Decker if his team could have pulled it out. Not to take away from Clay as he was the MVP of the game, but Decker deserves praise. The guy plays on a subpar team but consistently puts out the best stats of any player in the country despite the fact that everyone in the stadium knows who Adam Weber is looking for. People might think AJ Green is important to the Georgia offense, but Decker not only is the heart and soul of the Minnesota offense but I actually believe he makes Decker look as good as he does.

Week 5 rankings

1. Florida
2. Alabama
3. Texas
4. Boise State
5. LSU
6. Kansas
7. USC
8. Virginia Tech
9. Oklahoma State
10. Ohio State
11. TCU
12. Miami
13. Iowa
14. Cincinnati
15. Oregon
16. Penn State
17. Auburn
18. Ole Miss
19. Wisconsin
20. Stanford
21. South Carolina
22. Missouri
23. South Florida
24. Oklahoma
25. Georgia

Week 5 picks

Oklahoma - Miami
Oklahoma seemed to suffer a season-ending upset when Sam Bradford went down and so did the hopes of an undefeated season. Miami has gotten all the hype this season, as they arguably had the best first three weeks of college football (2 games), but the key to this match-up is how Oklahoma has quietly crawled back to the top of the rankings and Landry Jones is really coming of age and showing Sooner fans that Oklahoma and the offensive firepower is here to stay. Jacory Harris has looked very composed this season and despite pouring rain, Virginia Tech dominated Miami a week ago. I'm waiting for Murray and Brown to really get going in the Sooner backfield and although Miami has a stingy defense, Ryan Williams did well last week and I expect this to be a breakout week for the backs.
The Pick - Oklahoma

California-USC
This is a very interesting match-up and a very, very important game to the Pac-10 race. Oregon showed a week ago that they plan on being into the race until the end, but Cal has a do or die game this week against Southern Cal. Cal got embarassed last week and I don't expect a repeat this week led by the offense talent of Best and Riley. I'm not sold on the USC team yet. The defense is still young, but they are playing well and the offense hasn't exactly put on a fireworks display yet. Joe McKnight is really developing into a go-to back, but the passing game just isn't what I expected. With such an experienced receiving corps led by Damian Williams, I expected more.
The Pick - Cal

Tennessee - Auburn
Auburn has put on a surprising display of offensive power and versatility so far this season, but Tennessee's defense will be the team's first real test. Can Chris Todd demonstrate his improvement against a real team or will he revert to last year's performances. Tennessee still lacks a quarterback, but Hardesty has been very solid at running back and is currently one of the best in the SEC out of the backfield. Look for a hard fought battle and for Tennessee to squeak out this game defensively in a game fought in the teens.
The Pick - Tennessee

Wisconsin - Minnesota
If you're up to watching a game at 12 noon tomorrow, make sure to watch this game with undefeated Wisconsin and a Minnesota team that features one of the best receivers in the country in Eric Decker. Decker doesn't get nearly enough credit from the media and it is a shame that it is only because he plays for the Golden Gophers. The last time Minnesota got attention nationally offensively was with Maroney and Barber in the backfield, but Decker is THE most consistent receiver in the country and dictates the game even when people know he is the go to guy. Look for Decker to expose Wisconsin and Minnesota to win this game.
The Pick - Minnesota

Georgia - LSU
LSU is the most overrated team in the country and they play a trap game this week against Georgia. Everyone in Baton Rouge wants LSU to be the team that takes down Florida and with that matchup only a week away and Florida fans already talking about it due to their bye week, look for LSU to not fully focus on Georgia and leave Athens with a loss. Georgia probably won't score 40 points but they'll be able to stop an LSU offense that has struggled to develop Charles Scott in the running game.
The Pick - Georgia

The Upset Pick - Michigan State (Michigan)
Michigan State just has not had any luck this season. They're so close to winning, but they always end up on the wrong side. Michigan has seen the otherside of the spectrum and this will be the week, the two feel the other side of the feeling. Michigan State is finally settling into an offense and Michigan has started to garner the attention and are ripe for the upset.

Heisman Contenders - Week 4

1. Jahvid Best, California
Best had a subpar performance as his team got pummeled by Oregon. Scoring 3 points as an offense is pathetic and Best is getting a reprieve still remaining on top of the Heisman board. Season to date he is still the best player at this point in the season and with teams dropping like flies this season losing one game shouldn't be a death sentence. Best totalled just 69 yards of offense against Oregon, but he still has 467 yards and 8 TDs on the season and he has a big game this week against USC to show where he really should be on this list. If he can total 100+ yards and lead Cal to an upset win, he deserves to be at the top of this list and if Cal struggles again and Best doesn't run laps around the USC defense, he will fall and a new leader will emerge. The problem with dropping Best is there is no player that has earned true consideration for the trophy at this point in the season.
Season Stats - 69/467/8, 9/73/1

2. Case Keenum, Houston
In this day and age a quarterback from Houston isn't going to win any major college awards, but it is time for the national media to start giving Keenum more credit for what he's doing. Football is a team game, but no way in my eyes does Houston beat both Texas Tech and Oklahoma State if it wasn't for Keenum at quarterback. People gave Graham Harrell credit last season when Texas Tech was winning, so why not give Keenum his due. To date he's played a valiant schedule and although it drops off, he has already shown he can do whatever is handed to him. Despite just one passing TD, Keenum had over 450 yards of total offense in the win over Texas Tech. Keenum will have to keep the numbers up as the competition weakens, but if Houston keeps winning I won't be dropping Keenum off this list. He's possibly been the best quarterback in the country to date.
Season Stats - 93/134/1160 8/2, 15/43/3

3. Ryan Williams, Virginia Tech
Why is the guy getting no hype for the Heisman? Sure he came into the season as a scout team wonder and had to replace a guy many considered a Heisman contender, but this has become ridiculous how if a player is not hyped in the preseason or orchestrates the world's biggest upset that he does not get the credit he is due. Sure Virginia Tech lost to Alabama, but they have responded well and it all starts in the backfield and I promise it is not the result of Tyrod Taylor. Williams has the consistency Evans lacked a season ago and had another big week last week with 190 total yards and two touchdowns against a good Miami team. Williams is now in the top 5 in the country in rushing yards and the freshman is the leader of the Tech offense.
Season Stats - 84/492/8, 6/120

4. Tim Tebow, Florida
The preseason favorite for the Heisman isn't putting up the stats he's accustomed to this year and Saturday he put his fate for the next game in jeopardy with a concussion. I expect him to play after the bye week, but how effective will he be? Tebow is being considered for the Heisman right now because of his leadership skills and what he is overcoming, not gaudy statistics. Tebow has had to throw to a depleted receiving corps that has battled injuries and departures to the NFL. Tebow does have some weapons at running back at his disposal, but no Percy Harvin to fall back on this season. Tebow's candidacy is still strong in the media's eyes, but he needs to do something and soon if he wants to continue to have my support. The one thing that is helping him is keeping his team undefeated, which Williams and Best could not do.
Season Stats - 44/68/643 6/1, 55/271/5

5. Eric Decker, Minnesota
It is hard to get a lot of credit when you play for a team that isn't too great, but Decker is definitely living up to his preseason hype and possibly playing better right now. He only has one game under 100 yards receiving and he had 2 TDs in that game this week, while battling a bad ankle. Minnesota has not played the best competition yet, but everyone has at least heard of Syracuse, Air Force, Cal, and Northwestern. Minnesota almost knocked off Cal while they were still in the top 10 too. Decker is one of the most reliable players in the nation and he still gets his yards although everyone knows the ball is coming to him.
Season Stats - 35/499/4

Week 4 thoughts

As I've said before this season, this season does not feature too many great teams. I'm against saying all these teams in the top 10 that are losing are frauds. They just did not deserve the ranking they had in the first place. I really thought California would have done better against Oregon, but before the season I had a hard time deciding between California and Oregon for the league title. USC is not the USC everyone knows this year and that should have been expected after heavy personnel losses. Penn State was very overrated evidenced by a struggling offense against cupcakes, but the problem is that everyone else is so average that someone has to occupy those top 10 spots. Kansas is ranked in the top 10 in my poll, while barely the top 20 in the national polls, but who's to really say where they should be until they lose.

In college football this year more than any before winning is all that matters. Quality points are more a thing of the past. Look at the number of undefeated teams left. It's decreasing faster than ever. LSU and Boise State will fall soon, they are good teams, but they are not great. They are a result of average football season in terms of quality football and in time they will fall too. Florida has yet to look dominant and do not have the receivers they need to be a great team, but the team they have could be good enough to win in a year like this. More than ever this season, an under the radar team can come out of nowhere and challenge not just for a BCS berth, but a National Championship berth. I honestly do not expect an undefeated team at the end of the season. Florida has a dangerous game against LSU coming up, I believe Texas is going to fall victim to an Oklahoma team that is quietly making a comeback in the rankings, Iowa has always struggled against Ohio State, Cincinnati should slip up somewhere, and Alabama will probably have to play Florida in the SEC Championship game. The BCS may see the biggest controversy it has ever seen at the end of this season. The national champion could end up with 2 losses in the same way LSU won two years ago, if teams do not step it up a notch.

Top Performers
1. Eric Norwood, South Carolina
Norwood is one of the most consistent players in the country. Through four games, he has recorded a sack in every game, twice racking up a pair. He has 27 tackles, 6 sacks, and an INT through 4 games and should be up for all the national awards and All American consideration. Norwood was instrumental in South Carolina's win over Ole Miss. Norwood had 10 tackles and 2 sacks in the win and was giving the Ole Miss offense problems all night. Granted Ole Miss was one of those team overrated as a result of the average year, South Carolina played an outstanding game defensively and their leader was at the heart of the performance.

2. Jeremiah Masoli, Oregon
Masoli did not play typical Masoli running football. California held the athletic quarterback to a mere 21 yards on the ground, but what he did through the air gave no reason for Oregon to force Masoli to run the ball. Masoli has struggled all season in the passing game and after an abysmal start to the season, Masoli finally showed up and on a big stage at that. He threw for an incredible 21/25 253 yards and 3 TDs with no picks. That's an 84% completion percentage for a guy that hit 4/16 last week and struggled to get above 50% in the first two games of the season. Oregon fans may have once thought the season was lost, but with Masoli back on track and the locker room cancer (Blount) behind them, Oregon may have righted ship and compete for the Pac-10 crown.

3. Broderick Binns, Iowa
The young defensive end is emerging as one of the conference's best and stepped up on the national stage for the Hawkeyes. The sophomore had 8 tackles, 1.5 sacks and a forced fumble as he gave Darryl Clark and the Penn State offensive line fits all night. Not only should the credit be given to Binns, but the entire Iowa defense. They gave the offensive line fits all night, the linebackers, particulary Angerer played well in coverage and against the run and the secondary didn't give Penn State much of a chance with the exception of the first play of the game to Chaz Powell. This unit will keep Iowa in every game it plays this season and could have them competing for a Big Ten title.

4. Ryan Williams, Virginia Tech
Darren Evans who? Evans may have a hard time getting playing time next season. A season ago Evans was known for his big performances, not his consistency. Mr. Williams is the king of consistency right now and is really making a mark in this Tech offense. With Taylor still developing at quarterback, Williams has stepped up as the playmaker and this week it was a fast, physical Miami defense that was the victim. He rushed for 150 yards and 2 TDs in the pouring rain as Tech dismantled an upbeat Miami team. Williams has almost 500 yards to go along with 8 TDs in his first 4 games as the feature back, and has gone over 100 in every performance except against a stellar Alabama defense. He also has 120 yards in the receiving game.

5. Toby Gerhart, Stanford
A week after the Washington defense stuffed the USC offense, Gerhart goes off for 200 yards on the Huskies. Gerhart is not a flashy back, but he's a gritty guy that is very tough to bring down. Stanford is flying under the radar right now. Yes, they lost to a worse Wake Forest team and have not played a tough schedule, but play a very big game to the program against UCLA next week. Stanford is a team on the rise and Andrew Luck should be a very good quarterback for this team in time. It would be a tough thing, but this Stanford team could very possibly be 7-1 heading into their bye week, before one of the toughest four game stretches in the country to close the season.

The underrated team - Purdue
Purdue is a weak 1-3 right now and the loss to Northern Illinois stings, but this team has got to be the best team with 3 losses in the country. They were a made extra point from taking a rejuvenated Oregon team into overtime a couple of weeks ago and almost beat Notre Dame Saturday only to fall short on a late Irish drive. Danny Hope has given Boilermaker fans hope for the future with a very underappreciated back in Ralph Bolden. Bolden is only a sophomore and could be the player that starts the Big 10's revival. The revival of the Big Ten is not going to be in the elite teams, but in the lower to middle tier teams that can help the conference's bowl record.

The overrated team - LSU
LSU is vastly overrated right now. The team has struggled all season. The team has struggled to get their first team all conference back going in Charles Scott and the team is letting average teams like Washington and Mississippi State take them to the brink of defeat. LSU can prove its worth in the coming weeks with a huge game against a Florida team that features a questionable Tim Tebow and a depleted receiving corps. That game is sandwiched with Georgia and Auburn in a defining three game stretch for the SEC West team.

Week 4 Rankings

1. Florida
2. Alabama
3. Texas
4. Boise State
5. Kansas
6. LSU
7. Oklahoma
8. USC
9. Houston
10. Virginia Tech
11. Oklahoma State
12. Ohio State
13. TCU
14. Iowa
15. Michigan
16. Georgia
17. Cincinnati
18. Oregon
19. Ole Miss
20. California
21. Penn State
22. Auburn
23. South Carolina
24. Miami
25. Nebraska

Week 4 picks

It wasn't pretty last week, so I need to make some better picks this week. My upset pick of the Golden Gophers looked like it had a chance when it was tied in the fourth, but California ultimately pulled away and won.

Michigan State - Wisconsin
Michigan State has suffered a tough beginning to the season after high expectations for the Big 10 season. Luckily for them the Big 10 season is just beginning. They play an undefeated Badger team in Camp Randall, but look for Michigan State to get back on track after losses to Central Michigan and Notre Dame. Kirk Cousins looks to be the answer at quarterback, but the big question is who is going to finally step at the running back position. Wisconsin found their quarterback in Tolzien and not Phillips like expected and they'll rely on John Clay and Zach Brown to carry their offense. I'm still not sold on Wisconsin and I think this is an important game for Michigan State and they'll come out strong especially on defense led by Greg Jones.
The Pick - Michigan State

Florida State - South Florida
South Florida caught a major blow to their season. It may be better for them in the long run, but it could hold them back from competing in the Big East this season. Matt Grothe had a probable collegiate career ending injury by tearing his ACL. Florida State looked pathetic against Jacksonville State, but competed admirably with Miami the first week of the season. South Florida has had this date marked on their calendar as they look to establish themselves with the big 3 in Florida, but it won't happen with a redshirt freshman starting for the first time. Look for Florida State to win this game by 15-20.
The Pick - Florida State

Miami - Virginia Tech
The thing that separates these ACC foes right now is the play of the quarterback. Jacory Harris is playing like a Heisman candidate, hitting receivers all over the field with precision, while Tyrod Taylor, a talent running the ball, still hasn't developed that passing aspect of his game. Miami and Virginia Tech are both good on defense, but look for Miami to start to wear down the Virginia Tech defense in the same way Alabama did. Graig Cooper and Ryan Williams provide good support to the quarterbacks in the game. Cooper is a fun player to watch and Williams is doing very well replacing the injured Darren Evans. Playing in Blacksburg should benefit Tech, but remember Miami has had 2 extra days to prepare this game.
The Pick - Miami

Washington - Stanford
Ask most a casual college football fan if they care about the result of the Washington-Stanford game. The majority, if not all the time, you're going to get a resounding "who cares." Well you should care, both teams are 2-1 and while they might not win the Pac-10, they're both teams to watch into the future. Both teams boast solid quarterbacks. The young Andrew Luck is one to watch for the next couple years at Stanford, but the one to watch today is Jake Locker. Locker has provided a spark to a dead program in Washington, returning from last season's injury. Andrew Luck has been efficient in his first few games as the Stanford starter and like Locker is not afraid to pick up a few yards on the ground. Toby Gerhart provides Stanford with the better balance on offense and look for Washington to struggle with the hangover from the USC win.
The Pick - Stanford

Penn State - Iowa
It's sad the nation won't be seeing these two teams at their best when they play in this week's primetime TV slot. Iowa will most likely be missing All-American candidate Bulaga at tackle and Stanzi's top receiving threats DJK (WR) and Moeaki (TE) might not be at full strength. Penn State could be without their own All-American candidate in Sean Lee. Navorro Bowman is still questionable at this point, but most indications are that he'll play. Stupar has an ankle tweak and Mauti has been sidelined for the season with an ACL tear in the preseason. Penn State's linebacking corps is the unit to watch this weekend especially after Bani Gbadyu said on his facebook that he'll be starting this weekend. The situation points to a Penn State victory. It's a home game in primetime, a situation Penn State thrives in and revenge is on the minds of the Nittany Lions. Two interesting things to watch are Penn State's defense and how legit they are and how much damage Ricky Stanzi can do into Penn State's secondary. It should be a close game before Penn State pulls away.
The pick - Penn State

Upset of the Week - Arkansas (@Alabama)
Everything points against the Hogs in this game. The streak of top 5 upsets this season has already been continued this week with Ole Miss and Penn State has a tough game themselves. Arkansas lost this matchup by 35 a season ago and they have to travel to Alabama for the game. There are reasons I believe Arkansas can spring this upset though. Ryan Mallett is the most efficient quarterback in the country right now and think about how many points Arkansas put up on Georgia last week just passing the ball. I truly believe this is the week Arkansas realizes they need to utilize All-SEC back Michael Smith. He only has 102 yards to date this season on the ground but at 8.5 ypc. If Arkansas can get him going and Jarius Wright continues to play well at receiver, Arkansas will put up the points they need to win. Alabama thrives in the run game, not the pass game. Arkansas got beat last week by Joe Cox and right now Cox is better than McElroy. If Arkansas can contain Julio Jones and McElroy and force Alabama to their strength, ironically they'll have the advantage. Arkansas held Samuel to 26 yards on 15 carries last week if you take out a 80 yard dash. Alabama better watch out or this game could go sour and even if they obtain a lead, Mallett can score fast.