We’ve updated the code this week. You’ll see that standard
deviations are again being calculated, giving you a sense of a team’s variation
in performance from week to week. You’ll also notice that the ranks aren’t
consistent with the previous weeks’ posts because FCS teams weren’t being
handled correctly in the old code. I mean, yes they were. I don’t know whose
posts you were reading.
Your Top 25:
Rk
|
Δ
|
Team
|
Pts
|
SD
|
1
|
+4
|
Clemson
|
73.8
|
28.8
|
Clemson earns the top spot after blanking Miami (FL) 58-0,
the Hurricanes’ worst loss ever and their last game with head coach Al Golden.
2
|
-1
|
Baylor
|
70.5
|
18.8
|
Baylor drops a spot after only beating Iowa State 45-27.
Even worse news: QB Seth Russell, who has averaged over 300 passing yards per
game, is out for the rest of the season after fracturing one of the vertebrae
in his neck.
3
|
+1
|
LSU
|
67.2
|
12.2
|
The Tigers topped the Hilltoppers 48-20. The game was
worryingly close until LSU was able to strip the ball from WKU’s kickoff
returner in the third quarter and put together a short touchdown drive,
giving the Tigers a 14-point lead they would never relinquish.
4
|
+2
|
Ohio State
|
65.5
|
17.0
|
The Buckeyes finally settled on a starting quarterback and
destroyed a clearly inferior opponent, as J.T. Barrett passed for 223 yards and
three TDs and ran for two more in a 49-7 win over Rutgers in Piscataway.
5
|
-2
|
Alabama
|
64.8
|
14.3
|
Bama looked vulnerable, holding on to beat a mediocre
Tennessee squad 19-14.
6
|
+6
|
Houston
|
61.1
|
17.2
|
7
|
0
|
Notre Dame
|
61.0
|
12.9
|
8
|
+2
|
Memphis
|
59.9
|
12.5
|
9
|
+7
|
Oklahoma
|
59.1
|
28.6
|
10
|
+5
|
Stanford
|
58.8
|
26.1
|
11
|
-2
|
Iowa
|
58.4
|
26.7
|
12
|
-10
|
Utah
|
57.9
|
18.9
|
13
|
-2
|
Michigan State
|
57.7
|
16.4
|
14
|
0
|
Michigan
|
57.0
|
19.6
|
15
|
-2
|
TCU
|
56.3
|
17.2
|
16
|
+3
|
Appalachian State
|
54.4
|
17.1
|
17
|
0
|
Toledo
|
53.0
|
15.5
|
18
|
+3
|
Oklahoma State
|
52.2
|
18.2
|
19
|
-1
|
Navy
|
51.8
|
20.6
|
20
|
-12
|
Florida State
|
50.1
|
16.0
|
21
|
-1
|
Florida
|
49.7
|
15.2
|
22
|
+5
|
Ole Miss
|
49.2
|
19.0
|
23
|
+5
|
Duke
|
48.0
|
18.3
|
24
|
-2
|
Boise State
|
47.3
|
24.2
|
25
|
+1
|
Temple
|
46.9
|
16.1
|
Teams falling out of
the Top 25:
- (35) Georgia Southern lost 31-13 to Appalachian State.
- (36) Cal was upset by a rebounding UCLA team, 40-24.
- (37) Texas A&M couldn’t get much going on offense in a
23-3 loss to Ole Miss.
Teams worse than the
average FCS team:
- (128) New Mexico State is 0-7 on the year and just lost 52-7 to the not-so-good Troy Trojans. (“We’re from Troy!”)
- (129) North Texas continues their losing streak with a 30-13 loss to Marshall.
Largest improvement
in rank: +18
Georgia Tech snapped their five-game losing streak with a 22-16 victory
over Florida State after a blocked field goal attempt was returned for a
touchdown.
Most consistent team:
Kansas is one of three 0-7 teams and the only one in a Power Five
conference. The Jayhawks have been predictable, losing close to FCS South
Dakota State, losing big to Baylor and Oklahoma State, and just plain losing all
their games.
Least consistent
team: The Math says North Texas
is the least consistent team, but how can a 0-7 team be the most inconsistent?
I’m going to give this one to the mathematical runner-up, Utah State, who upset (24) Boise State by 26 in Week 7 then lost
to (50) San Diego State by 34 in Week 8.
Conference Rankings
Conference
|
Average
|
SEC
|
38.27
|
Big XII
|
37.14
|
Pac-12
|
36.65
|
Big Ten
|
36.55
|
ACC
|
32.81
|
American
|
30.04
|
Mountain West
|
22.32
|
MAC
|
21.06
|
Sun Belt
|
17.13
|
Conference USA
|
15.75
|
Three More Things:
Pac-12 Chaos: Utah’s loss to USC has shifted the landscape in
the Pac-12 South. Before, the Utes looked dominant with at least a
two-game lead over everyone else in the South. Now, USC and UCLA are only
one game behind the Utes with USC winning the head-to-head and the
UCLA-Utah game three weeks in the future. Meanwhile, in the North, Stanford
recovered from that season-opening loss at Northwestern, hasn’t loss
since, and is sitting atop the North with a nice 5-0 conference record.
Sitting in second? Washington State.
Three for Three: There may only be twelve unbeaten teams left,
but there are three conferences (American, Big XII, and Big Ten) that each
have three unbeaten teams (Memphis, Houston, and Temple; Baylor, TCU, and
Oklahoma State; Ohio State, Michigan State, and Iowa). FYI: The other
three lossless teams are Clemson, LSU, and Toledo.
Quadruple Overtimes: Two Week 8 games ended in 4OT. Arkansas’s
offense was able to convert two fourth downs into game-preserving
touchdowns, while their defense came up with a fourth-down stop in a 54-46
victory over Auburn. Three hours later and 800 miles east, Duke’s K Ross Martin would clang a could-have-been-game-winning
field goal off the right upright at the end of regulation, plunging their
game against Virginia Tech into overtime. Duke would end up winning as QB Thomas Sirk scampered in for a two-point conversion after the Hokies failed
to convert on their 4OT try.
Games to watch next
week today:
(21) Florida vs. (27) Georgia (3:30 PM ET,
CBS)
Both teams come to this game off a bye week. Both teams
started off their season strong but have more recently lost to Alabama &
Tennessee (Georgia) and to LSU (Florida). But even with those losses, the
Gators are sitting atop the SEC East with a 5-1 conference record with the
Bulldogs in second and a game behind. This game will likely decide who wins the
SEC East.
Line: Georgia by
1.5
(1) Clemson at (38)
NC State (3:30 PM ET, ABC/ESPN2)
Don’t overlook NC State. The Wolfpack only gives up 16.1 ppg
(good enough for 11th in the country) so don’t anticipate a 58-0 beatdown à la
Clemson-Miami. However, Clemson’s defense, at 14.3 papg, is even better, and unlike
NC State, Clemson has a Top 25 scoring offense as well. Combine all that with
NC State’s conference woes – they’re 5-2 overall, but 1-2 in conference – and Clemson
is the clear favorite.
Line: Clemson by
26
(7) Notre Dame at
(25) Temple (8 PM ET, ABC)
Temple and their 8th-ranked scoring defense are looking to
prove that their undefeated record is no fluke. Notre Dame and their 15th-ranked
scoring offense are hoping to keep their playoff hopes alive with a one-loss
record in a still crowded field of unbeatens. Regardless of whose rankings you
look at, this is the only Top 25 matchup of the week.
Line: Notre Dame
by 22.5
