If there’s one thing we’ve learned this year, it’s that the playing field is pretty level in college football. Throw out he top 25, there should just be the top 10, and even that has been questionable. This year is shaping up to be one like ‘06 where every week someone in the top 10 was upset, mostly by unranked teams. This week we saw #3 USC and #7 BYU both lose to unranked teams. We also saw unanimous #1 Florida struggle with “Lame” Kiffin and the Tennessee Volunteers. The Vols had Tim Tebow and the Gators so frustrated that at one point Tebow barked at his offensive line like chef Gordon Ramsay does to his peon cooks. Buckle up, it’s going to be another crazy ride this week. Here are some headlines you might see accompanying the ride:

The Texas Longhorns have sat quietly in the #2 spot all year.

Big Game in the ACC???

The ACC has been taking turns with the Big East Conference getting dumped on by naysayers of the BCS the past few years. The thought of either conference being represented in the National Championship has been laughable. BUT, the ACC has been slowly improving and has some good teams this year with an actual shot to play in the big game. Florida State made some noise by smoking #7 BYU on the road last week, and Miami beat conference foe #13 Georgia Tech. It’s been a long time since there has been a critical game with such high stakes in the ACC, so this week’s matchup of #12 Virginia Tech and #13 Miami will be a treat. By season’s end we’ll know if the ACC is really back or if they are just a broken clock, a broken clock is always right at least twice a day. For now, the ACC is looking to rise above it’s critics, the Big East will always be there though.

Bulldogs Finally Bite

Fresno State has had a couple of wins dangle in front of them like a nice piece of meat, but they just haven’t been able to grab it. They came so close at Wisconsin, and scared Boise State at home. If there is a team poised and ready to win a game in which they are not favored, it’s the Bulldogs. Cincinnati has a relatively immature football program, they are more used to being in the basketball spotlight. But as we just barely discussed, if there is a conference for immature football programs to have lots of success, it’s the Big East.

TCU, It’s Your Turn

The TCU Horned Frogs have went from flying under radar to having a target directly on their backs. With their Mountain West cohorts BYU and Utah falling over the weekend, the Frogs look to be the forerunners to get an at-large BCS bid solely based on their schedule. When the season is said and done, if Boise State goes undefeated they will only have one “quality win,” and it will have been a win over Oregon at home. TCU faces the Clemson Tigers this week on the road, and still has BYU and Utah on their schedule. Those are three “top quality wins,” but it all starts this week. Look for TCU to stroll into Clemson, take care of business, and hop away 2-0.  

Yes, Houston has a football program, and yes, they are good this year.

 JIB Picks

Last Week: 18-4 / Overall: 53-10

#1 Florida – Kentucky / #2 Texas – UTEP / #3 Alabama – Arkansas / #4 Penn State – Iowa / #5 Mississippi – South Carolina / #6 Cal – Oregon / #7 LSU – Mississippi State / #8 Boise State – Bowling Green / #9 Oklahoma – Bye / #10 USC – Washington State / #11 Ohio State – Illinois / #12 Virginia Tech - #13 Miami / #14 TCU – Clemson / #15 Cincinnati – Fresno State / #16 Oklahoma State – Grambling State / #17 Georgia – Arizona State / #18 North Carolina – Georgia Tech / #19 Kansas – Southern Miss/ #20 BYU – Colorado State / #21 Missouri – Nevada / #22 Michigan – Indiana / #23 Houston - Texas Tech / #24 Nebraska  - Louisiana-Lafayette / #25 Florida State – South Florida

After getting off to their best start in school history, the #5 Oklahoma State Cowboys were feeling pretty good about themselves.  Just like Rutgers, South Florida, and East Carolina (just to name a few in recent years),  the Cowboys found themselves in uncharted territory of football success and got their ship sunk. Oklahoma State was the ugly girl of the Big 12 Conference that got a self esteem boost in the preseason when several people in the media started gauking over them and telling them that they were gorgeous. Unfortunately, the Houston Cougars came into Stillwater and wrecked the ugly girl’s chance at going to the BCS Ball. With exception to Notre Dame, the rest of the top 25 stood pat, but this week proposes several trap games for highly ranked teams. Here are some headlines you might see as you follow this weekend’s action in the college football world:

After handling #13 Georgia Tech, Miami should move up in the 25 rankings.

Georgia Tech Left With No Option

When head coach Paul Johnson took over the reins at Georgia Tech, he brought his triple option offense from Navy with him. There are several skeptics of the triple option offense, myself included. The last truly successful option offense was run masterfully by Heisman quarterback Eric Crouch at Nebraska almost ten years ago. While Georgia Tech did rank #4 in the country last year in rushing yards, they were #116 in passing. The defensive game plan for the Miami Hurricanes this week seems pretty simple, stop the rush and stop the Yellow Jackets. One important element to stopping the rush is speed, which Miami has, and the home field advantage for the Hurricanes certainly will help as well.

Takin’ Care of Business

 #1 Florida, #2 Texas, and #3 USC all have games with important meaning that could slip away if they don’t focus. When Tennessee head coach Lane Kiffin was hired, he said he was looking forward to many things. Two things in particular he was excited for was to beat Florida and to then sing “Rocky Top” (the unofficial fight song of Tennessee), all night long. After Florida dismantles the Vols, the only song Kiffin will be singing is “Nobody knows the trouble I’ve seen, nobody knows but Charlie Weis.” Meanwhile, the #2 Texas Longhorns will have an old Texas shootout and avenge it’s only loss last year to Texas Tech, which kept them out of the National Championship Game. Also, USC will visit it’s former offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian, who is now the head coach of the Washington Huskies. The Northwest has not been kind to the Trojans, where they have lost to Oregon State and Oregon the last two years. A re-energized Washington Huskies team will prove to be a challenge for the Trojans, but the Trojans will take care of business and head home 3-0.

That Was Close

Toledo and Fresno State are heading into match ups this week against Ohio State and Boise State feeling pretty confident. Toledo handed it to Colorado and Fresno State went on the road and took Wisconsin into double overtime. Ohio State is coming off of an extreme mental blow, losing to USC at home in a game they thought they should have won. The Buckeyes can either approach this game with aggression to avenge their loss from last week, or they can come out flat feeling sorry for themselves. I believe they will come out more aggressive with their offense and have a tenacity on defense as well. Ohio State knows that when you are “Ohio State,” you can reach the National Championship Game every year with one loss as long as your other wins look good. Toledo is no pushover though, and will test the Buckeyes much like Navy did opening weekend. Switching gears,  the Boise State Broncos need to be careful in how they approach their game this week. The Bulldogs will be the Broncos’ toughest contest they will have until the end of the season, if the Broncos slip up then the Bulldogs will take full advantage and spoil the Broncos dream season.  A win is a win, which will be uttered by Ohio State and Boise State after they pull out squeakers this weekend.

Penn State has quietly snuck into the top 5 again.

JIB Picks

Last Week: 18-3 / Overall: 35-6

#1 Florida – Tennessee / #2 Texas – Texas Tech / #3 USC – Washington / #4 Alabama – North Texas / #5 Penn State – Temple / #6 Mississippi – Southeast Louisiana / #7 LSU – Louisiana-Lafayette / #8 California – Minnesota / #9 BYU – Florida State / #10 Boise State – Fresno State / #11 Ohio State – Toledo / #12 Oklahoma – Tulsa / #13 Georgia Tech – #22 Miami / #14 Virginia Tech – #18 Nebraska / #15 TCU – Texas State / #16 Utah – Oregon / #17 Oklahoma State – Rice / #19 North Carolina - East Carolina / #20 Georgia - Arkansas / #21 Cincinnati – #24 Oregon State / #23 Kansas - Duke / #25 Missouri- Furman

The opening weekend of college football began and ended with lots of excitement. In what is usually an anticipated, but uneventful weekend, the first week of action this year brought several marquee match ups within the top 25 that resulted in a lot of movement in the polls. BYU pulled off the biggest upset of the weekend with it’s win over #3 Oklahoma that vaulted them up 11 spots in the polls. In other action, Boise State knocked Oregon out of the top 25 and Alabama proved it will once again be a force at the top of the polls. Here’s a couple headlines you might see after week 2 is over, along with JIB Picks:

Jimmy Clausen and the Fighting Irish are hoping to knock off Michigan this weekend.

Next Coach Out?

No two head coaches have been more highly scrutinized than Notre Dame’s Charlie Weis and Michigan’s Rich Rodriguez. Going into this week’s match up in Ann Arbor, fans of both sides are satisfied. It’s definitely a new low for both schools when they are excited after wins over Nevada and Western Michigan, but one of them will be back into pessimistic mode after this game. Weis and his Fighting Irish have an easier road ahead of them. With exception to the USC Trojans making a stop in South Bend to pound the Irish in a couple weeks, the Irish do not play another ranked team and are catching most teams on a “down year.” The Big 10 (with 11 teams in it, and Notre Dame as an unofficial 12th team) is having a down year as a whole. Rodriguez and his Wolverines have the tougher road, having to play Ohio State and Penn Statethis year. A win against Notre Dame could be a nice springboard to prove to themselves they can win against a ranked team, but the Irish will dash those hopes and be the sixth team in eight games to beat Michigan in “The Big House” under Rodriguez.

Buckeyes Get Cracked

 Ohio State was exposed greatly as they nearly escaped Navy last weekend. Buckeye quarterback Terrelle Pryor was pressured and the Buckeye defense seemed to be on their heels most of the game. USC’s greatest weapon they have against the Buckeyes will be their speed, on both offense and defense. Trojans freshman quarterback Matt Barkley was largely untested in his debut at home against an inferior San Jose State squad, his ability to stay poised and mistake-free will be a huge factor in the outcome of this game. Ohio State has struggled recently in big time games.  They lost last year’s match up to USC at the Coliseum and ended their season with a bitter loss in the Fiesta Bowl to Texas. Ohio State needs this win to prove themselves as a legitimate contender for the National Championship and to defend the accusation that the Big 10 Conference is on the outs, it’s too bad USC is standing in the way.

MWC Strikes Again

The Mountain West Conference has plead it’s case more than any other conference that they belong with the big boys. Last year they beat out the PAC-10 in head-to-head match ups, and had three teams finish in the top 25 (those same three also started this year in the top 25). The Utah Utes made a huge statement at the end of last year when they beat #4 Alabama in the Sugar Bowl and BYU made a huge statement last weekend by defeating #3 Oklahoma. UNLV is by no means a powerhouse in the MWC, but they do play well at home and defeated PAC-10 school Arizona State last year on the road. The Oregon State Beavers are well acquainted with the role of “giant killer,” they have filled that role in being USC’s worst enemy in recent years, this week they will be on the other side as UNLV will leave them not missing Vegas.

USC running back Joe McKnight is looking to carve through the Buckeye defense this weekend.

JIB Picks

Last Week: 17-3 / Overall: 17-3

#1 Florida – Troy / #2 Texas – Wyoming / #3 USC – #7 Ohio State / #4 Alabama – Florida International / #5 Penn State – Syracuse / #6 Oklahoma State – Houston / #8 Ole’ Miss (Bye) / #9 LSU – Vanderbilt / #10 California – Eastern Washington / #11 Boise State – Miami(OH) / #12 BYU – Tulane / #13 Georgia Tech – Clemson / #14 Oklahoma – Idaho State / #15 Virginia Tech - Marshall / #16 TCU – Virginia / #17 Utah – San Jose State / #18 Nebraska – Arkansas State / #19 North Carolina- Connecticut / #20 Notre Dame – Michigan / #21 Georgia – South Carolina / #22 Miami / #23 Cincinnati - Southeast Missouri State / #24 Oregon State - UNLV / #25 Kansas – UTEP

College football is finally here, and with it brings the return of new articles to JIB Sports!!! Following tradition of “Sunday Headlines” from last year, “Headlines” will preview the upcoming weekend’s action in college football by providing you with headlines you might see in your Friday/Saturday/Sunday/Monday newspaper, or online, or on your favorite sports show. Let’s face it, we are long past the time when games were only played on Saturday and we all read the Sunday newspaper. One final point of business, JIB Sports uses the USA Today Coaches Poll in all our articles, which is one of the components used by the BCS to “calculate” who the best teams are. It’s great to be back, now let’s get down to the real business!

We can say without hesitation that college football is the most anticipated sport in America. Nothing compares to the passion and rivalry in college football. Families are torn, alliances are made, and grown men paint their faces and scream shirtless for hours in the bitter cold to rear their team to victory. We as fans really feel like we are part of the team. If given the opportunity, I’m sure many of us would quit our jobs to be a water boy for our beloved teams. Opening week this year is bound to be a great one. Breaking the tradition of top schools playing cream puffs, there will be three matchups with six schools in the top 25. Thursday features the most intriguing matchup of #14 Oregon and #16 Boise State. Then on Saturday #3 Oklahoma and #24 BYU will play in the Dallas Cowboys Stadium and #5 Alabama will square off against #7 Virginia Tech.

Boise State QB Kellen Moore will lead another high scoring offense in '09.

Broncos Send Ducks Waddling

This year has the writing on the wall of USC giving up their PAC-10 Conference Title for the first time since 2001. Oregon is looking like one of the schools that might claim it, and this first game will show us how good the Ducks really are. On the other side, as sad as this may seem, Oregon is the only road block in Boise State’s quest for an undefeated season. The next speed bump they will have is Nevada, and that isn’t saying much. With the increase of non-BCS schools qualifying for BCS bowls, an undefeated season with a weak schedule might not be enough anymore. The Broncos beat up on the Ducks last year in Eugene, so they have all the confidence coming into the game. The Broncos also have the comfort of playing on their blue home turf (also named the “Smurf Turf.”) Donald Duck used to be Oregon’s actual logo, their mascot is most likely a retired Donald Duck costume from Disneyland, and first year head coach Chip Kelly will be cussing up a storm in true Donald Duck fashion after this game.

Weber State Strikes Again

If you are a college sports fan then Weber State might ring a bell. Weber State, a small subdivision team from northern Utah, made some noise in the ‘99 NCAA basketball tournament by defeating the mighty North Carolina Tarheels, a few years earlier they ousted Michigan State. The Wildcats are giant killers, but the Wyoming Cowboys are not giants. However, the Mountain West Conference, which the Cowboys belong to, is a giant right now (or a pain in the butt depending on who you talk to). With all the ruckus the MWC has caused this off-season with the BCS, and being the first non-BCS conference to have three teams in the pre-season top 25, the MWC has some pride. After Wyoming’s loss to Weber State, it will be just one more knock on the conference. Fact is that Utah, BYU, and TCU are BCS caliber schools, the other six in the conference are not even close. If a tree falls in Laramie, Wyoming and nobody hears it, did it really fall? Yes!

Need Mor Skoring

No, my spell check is not broken, the Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game will leave us desiring more scoring and less defensive struggles. The Alabama Crimson Tide and Virginia Tech Hokies were both in the top 10 defensively in points allowed last year and neither had stellar offenses. The Hokies ranked 90th in offensive scoring, scraping by less than a touchdown in six of their games last year. Alabama ended last year with their poorest offensive performance in a beatdown at the hands of the Utah Utes. The Crimson Tide only averaged 189 passing yards per game last year and that number won’t get better with first year starter Greg McElroy as quarterback. Much of this game will be between the tackles going up and down the field at the pace of turtles with gimp legs.

#1 Florida – Charleston Southern / #2 Texas- Lousiana-Monroe / #3 Oklahoma – #24 BYU / #4 USC – San Jose State / #5 Alabama – #7 Vriginia Tech / #6 Ohio State – Navy / #8 Penn State – Akron / #9 LSU – Washington / #10 Mississippi – Memphis / #11 Oklahoma State – #13 Georgia / #12 California – Maryland / #14 Oregon – #16 Boise State / #15 Georgia Tech – Jacksonville State / #17 TCU – Virginia / #18 Utah - Utah State / #19 Florida State – Miami / #20 North Carolina – Citadel / #21 Iowa – Northern Iowa / #22 Nebraska – Florida Atlantic / #23 Notre Dame – Nevada / #25 Oregon State – Portland State