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.

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