college football recap: "this is why I don’t make predictions" edition

Too much football, too little time. Sorry, non sports fans, but I may not have time to post a regular blog post today. Blame it on all of the upsets!

• Let’s start off with the most important loss of the day, LSU’s. It took 3 overtimes, but #17 Kentucky was able to pull off what most people outside of Louisiana were hoping for—an upset. Even before the season began, LSU’s coach, Les Miles has been talking about how LSU deserved to be #1 because it was the best team in college football, how LSU’s schedule was much tougher than USC’s and how it wasn’t fair that USC was on top. Well, LSU was on top for 2 weeks before getting knocked out. For a night, I was a Kentucky fan and I was one of many in the sports bar who cheered them the Wildcats on to victory. I do feel bad for the Tiger fans, but maybe they should tell their cocky coach to keep his mouth shut.

• Oddly enough, I felt really bad for Cal who got beaten by the Pac-10 giant killers, Oregon State. I should be happy that the Beavers won because now USC has a better shot at the Pac-10 title. However, I know what Cal fans felt after that loss. After all, Stanford killed our title hopes last week when they beat us at home. And Oregon State beat us last year for our first loss of the ’06 season. And then Jesse reminded me that these were the same Cal fans who probably jumped for joy when Stanford beat USC last week. I don’t feel bad anymore. Karma’s a bitch, Golden Bears.

• So, who’s gonna be #1 now that #1 and #2 have been beaten? Well, the wussy Ohio State Buckeyes, of course. The former #3 team in the country beat Kent State (are they even Division 1-A?) and somehow is now the nation’s top team. Considering their cake walk schedule (with such powerhouses as Akon and Youngstown State) and how crappy the Big 10 has been this year, how is Ohio State not going to run the table? The only game they could possibly lose is against Michigan in November. And I’m sure they’re looking for some payback over their loss in ’06. Hmmm…ummm…Go Wolverines!

• Someone please explain to me how Kansas is in the Top 25 and unbeaten. Is it basketball season already? Oh nevermind…Kansas doesn’t play anybody.

• Before people start accusing me of being a hater because USC isn’t #1, I’m not. I would be perfectly happy if USF became #1 over Ohio State because at least they’ve beaten a good team and they have a relatively challenging schedule compared to Ohio State. USF convincingly beat previously #5 WVU and Auburn. They deserve to be up there. If Ohio State goes to the title game, they’re just gonna get blown out by their opponent (whoever that will be) because they haven’t been tested all season. Kinda like last season. Doesn’t matter. The way this season’s being going, who knows who’s gonna end up on top?

• Tech had a dominant performance against Duke this weekend, which is to be expected because they played Duke. But what wasn’t expected was the injury QB Tyrod Taylor suffered early in the game. This meant that my arch nemesis, Sean Glennon, had to enter the game and throw some passes. I wasn’t too worried because the Hokies were playing Duke. However, Glennon actually had a decent game. His passes were usually accurate and he threw for 2 TDs. Fortunately, the Hokies have a bye this weekend and will not play until the 26th, when they face #3 Boston College. Hopefully Taylor will be back by then.

• In a game against Arizona (where we were favored by 20 points for some odd reason), USC displayed its usual inconsistency on its way to a close victory. Mark Sanchez started for injured QB John David Booty and I was glad he did. Booty has been a disappointment all season and I wanted to see what Sanchez was capable of. Sanchez was 19 for 31 with 1 TD and 2 interceptions. Those numbers aren’t great. But he did seem to bring an energy that was missing with Booty. I wonder if Sanchez will get to start when Booty comes back.

USC is missing something and I’m not sure what it is. A healthy o-line? A clear leader? A receiving corps that can consistently catch balls? Our defense is awesome, but rarely forces turnovers. We’re clearly beatable and we’ve lost our mental edge. I’m not sure what the answer is.

Up next, the Hokies get to rest on Saturday, while USC visits South Bend for the annual showdown with Notre Lame.