College Football Review:Week 8

Week 8 of the 2008 College Football season is over. Let's take a look at this week



Best Game of the Week:Virginia Tech vs Boston College-Round 3 of the Va.Tech/BC saga went full swing as the Eagles took down the Hokies 28-23 in Boston on Saturday. The win gives the Eagles the edge in the ACC Atlantic Division title race. For Va.Tech, it is their first ACC lost. Who will win this wild conference.



Best Player of the Week:Colt McCoy(Texas)-29/32...thats all that needs to be said. Colt McCoy went out on Saturday night and demolished a very good Missouri team. This game was over in the 2nd Quarter when the Horns took a 35-0 lead. They never looked back and now Texas looks poised to win the conference and Colt McCoy the Heisman Trophy.



Dissapointment of the Week:Missouri-National Championship teams go out every Saturday and win. Even after they lose they have to bounce back and win. Mizzou did not do that and the result is a 56-31 blowout loss to the now frontrunner Texas Longhorns.



Surprise Team of the Week:Ohio State-Not too many expected the Buckeyes to even beat Michigan State let alone destroy them like they did. Ohio State exploded going up 28-0 en route to a 45-7 route of Michigan State. Gotta hand it to the Buckeyes they continue to fight.



Numbers:
1896-The last time Mizzou beat Texas in Austin...102 years and counting...



39-Total amount of points unanswered score by Penn State in their 46-17 win over Michigan on Saturday



67-The amount of total rushing yards Javon Ringer was held too in MSU's 45-7 loss to Ohio State



1955-The last time Maryland shut out a ranked team prior to the Terps 26-0 win over Wake Forest



91-Colt McCoy's completion percentage in Texas' 56-31 win over Missouri



The Contenders:

Texas-Do I need to say anymore? The Longhorns are real...much real. Texas went out on Saturday night and demolished a very good Missouri team. With one down and many to go. Can UT repeat 2005?



Oklahoma State-Many put OSU on upset alert but they responded knocking off Baylor 34-6. For OSU, however, it gets no easier...especially this week when they travel to Austin to face the Longhorns.



Penn State-Truth be told, they almost played their way off this list on Saturday against lowly Michigan. But they held strong and stormed back to beat the Wolverines for the first time since 1996. Its been a long time. But good things come to those who wait.



The Deadsetters:

Oklahoma-Another poor showing from the OU defense. The offense scored quickly and often but the defense was down again as OU beat Kansas 45-31 on Saturday. If OU's defense doesn't improve then they will struggle against Oklahoma State and whoever they face in the Big XII championships. Defense wins championships.



USC-Once again, the Trojans faced a lowly Pac 10 team and once again they demolished them. This week's victim was Washington State. The Trojans went up north and just 69'd them.



Georgia-The Dawgs are showing signs of hope as they knocked off Vanderbilt 24-13. However, Vandy is much different than the teams they get in the next two weeks...LSU and Florida.



South Florida-The Bulls are staying alive in good fashion as they knocked off Syracuse 45-13. USF is still pondering over the loss to Pitt, but in the world of college football things change often and fast.



Pittsburgh-Revenge tastes sweet in the steel city. In what was a good weekend for Pittsburgh football itself, the Panthers took a little ounce of revenge on Navy beating them 42-21 in Annapolis. Pitt will end October against Rutgers before facing the likes of Notre Dame, Cincinnati, and West Virginia in November.



Florida State-The Seminoles had a tad scare against N.C. State but it was short-lived as the Noles took out the Wolfpack 26-17. For FSU its a tough road to stay alive, however, as they face Virginia Tech on Saturday and begin November with Georgia Tech before facing Boston College, Maryland, and Florida.



Boston College-B.C. is one of those teams that people forget about. But this team is memorable. At the moment they're 5-1...but they should be 6-0. BC is THAT good. Jeff Jagozinski is not going away neither is Boston College. However the cold is coming in as BC takes on North Carolina, Notre Dame, Florida State, Wake Forest, and Maryland over the next few weeks.



The Unknown:

Texas Tech-Again Tech scores 40 plus. But again Tech gives up points to teams they shouldn't be giving points up to. This team Texas Tech gave up 25 points against Texas A&M who isn't exactly last years or the year before's Aggies. Texas Tech's next 4 games are against ranked opponetts...3 of which are in the y25 Top 5. All with top offense. Its going to be a cold autumn for the Hot Red Raiders.



Alabama-Talk about a collapse...Bama was up 24-3 at halftime on Ole Miss and slipped again nearly losing to the Rebels but hung on to escape 24-20. November 1st in Baton Rouge should be interesting.



Eliminated From Contention:

Wake Forest-A good defense saves a bad offfense...just not when the defense is just as bad.



Missouri-56-31...what else can I say?



Vanderbilt-They're still a reasonable good football team...they just need an offense.



Kansas-They tried...truth be told Aqib Talib would've made a HUGE difference had he stayed another year.



North Carolina-First it was Maryland, now its the Tar Heels...Virginia Cavaliers...dream killers?



Michigan State-1966 was the last time the Spartans were even in contention for the National Title. Some say they should've been champions...but they weren't. The result is that MSU is once again non-championship eligible. They're still a good team, however and can still make a run for the Rose Bowl.



The Mid-Major National Title Update:

Contenders:

Utah(8-0)-The Utes did what they needed to do. On Saturday they went out and beat up on another team. However, the Mountain West isn't easy with TCU and BYU left.



Boise State(6-0)-Revenge tastes sweet as the Broncos got revenge on Hawaii for last year's defeat. Hopefully they can duplicate Hawaii's success and get to a BCS Bowl game...just not with the same results.



Ball State(7-0)-The Cardinals were off but they will be back



Tulsa(7-0)-Again the Tulsa offense looked great...but the defense struggled. Against UTEP it was 28-28 at the end of the 1st Quarter. However, UTEP's offense faltered and Tulsa outscored them 42-7 the rest of the way to win 70-35 over the Miners. Remember, Tulsa still has East Carolina, Houston, and the C-USA championship.



Still Alive(At the Moment)

BYU(6-1)-The difference between the BCS and the JCS is that in the JCS you can lose 32-7 and still contend for the title. The Cougs however, needs TCU to lose, beat Utah and hope the MAC, WAC, and C-USA can take out the rest.



TCU(7-1)-This is a good football team. They held down OU's running game and beat a very good passing offense at BYU. I feel if OU had went to Fort Worth instead of Norman then TCU would've shown them whose boss. They still have Utah, however.



The Mid-10 Rankings:

1.Utah 7-0(Mountain West)

2.Boise State 6-0(WAC)

3.Ball State 7-0(MAC)

4.Tulsa 7-0(C-USA)

5.TCU 7-1(Mountain West)

6.BYU 6-1(Mountain West)

7.Central Michigan 5-2(MAC)

8.Air Force 5-2(Mountain West)

9.Troy 4-2(Sun Belt)

10.Western Michigan 6-2(MAC)

What 2 Watch 4:
Boise State vs San Jose State-There is always something about Friday Night Football. To many its the High School games...but to me its college. Friday Night Football has great games always. This one is no exception. In my opinion, Boise State is on upset alert. Can San Jose State pull it off? Find out Friday at 9pm on ESPN2.

Oklahoma State vs Texas-4 out of the last 5 years, Oklahoma State has had Texas on the ropes...and 4 out of the last 5 years, Oklahoma State has blown it. This Cowboy team is different, however, as they're better on offense and tougher on defense. Can OSU FINALLY beat Texas? Find out Saturday at 3:30pm on ABC(check your local listings).

Penn State vs Ohio State-The last time Joe Pa won in Columbus was before ANY of the players were born. Can Joe Pa end the nightmare? Find out Saturday at 8pm on ABC.

Georgia vs LSU-This was one of the nightmare games I was refering to when talking about Mark Richt and the Georgia Bulldogs. Yes LSU struggled against Florida but if you remember, this is in Death Valley and Les Miles is crazy. Can LSU beat Georgia? Find out Saturday at 3:30pm on CBS.

Texas Tech vs Kansas-First one to 100 wins, this will be a shootout guarenteed. As Graham Harrel and the fast striking Raider offense head to Lawrence to face Todd Reesing and the Kansas Jayhawks. Who will win this shootout? Find out Saturday at 12pm on ESPN.

Virginia vs Georgia Tech-UVA has knocked off Maryland, East Carolina, and North Carolina the last few weeks. Will Georgia Tech fall victim to the comeback Cavs? Find out Saturday at 3:30pm on ESPNU.

Virginia Tech vs Florida State-Va.Tech has never beaten Florida State on the road or even at a neutral site game. Last year the Hokies beat FSU for the first time ever at home. This year, however, the site is Tallahassee. Can Beamer and the Hokes finally beat FSU? Find out Saturday at 3:30pm on ABC(check your local listings).

Boston College vs North Carolina-Another wild ACC match-up. This time you have a returning BC trying to defend its ACC Atlantic Title against a tough upstart North Carolina team. BC is on upset alert. Can the Tar Heels beat the Eagles? Find out Saturday at 12pm(check your local listings).

Notre Dame vs Washington-Its Tyrone Willingham vs Charlie Weis, its been 4 years since Willingham left South Bend. Now with his job on the line, can Ty and his Huskies beat the Irish at home? Find out Saturday at 8pm on ESPN2.

Another great weekend of College Football as we head toward November. What other surprises await us this week? It all starts tonight at 8pm on ESPN2 as Ohio takes on Temple.