Parity! 4 of the Top 6, and 11 of the Top 18 Lost this Week
I know these conversations don't include us anymore but for college football fans what an amazing week in the top 20. Three Pac 12 tilts ended in great finishes (Oregon-AZ, UCLA-Utah, USC-ASU) plus the Bama-Ole Miss game, TCU-Oklahoma, ND-Stanford.
And parity is here!
List of losers in the top 6:
- #2 Oregon
- #3 Alabama
- #4 Oklahoma
- #6 A&M
Then the Utes defeated #8 UCLA
Unfortunately this helps those damn Spartans who despite a close call won.
Lower in the poll, 14 thru 19 all lost!
- #14 Stanford
- #15 LSU
- #16 USC
- #17 Wisconsin
- #18 BYU
- #19 Nebraska
The Pac 12 is eating each other as is the SEC West. This gives a huge benefit to the ACC and Big 10 teams as there is such a vast divide between the "great" and "good" teams in those conferences - there is no Washintgon State type team (which would be like 7th place in the Pac) in the ACC or Big 10 who you'd expect to knock off an OSU/FSU/MSU.
Still a long season to go but the OSU v MSU game has a chance to be a playoff play in with the ridiculous improvement in JT Barrett and no one else in the Big 10 of any value. Wiscy is mediocre (their LSU near win is looking worse by the week), Nebraska is fine as long as they dont play a death doom run defense like MSU rolls out annually now, and that's it from the West in terms of powers. Hell Rutgers may be the 3rd best team in the East at this point. And FSU already beat Clemson -- but has not looked impressive this year. They could be on upset alert but aside from a crap Florida team and ND it is difficult to figure out who. Which brings up the point ND v FSU could also be a play in game for the playoffs. Ugh.
Thinking MSU moves up 1-2 spots next week (#9ish), and OSU rockets up (#13ish) due to all the losses of teams ahead of them and their reputation. Nebraska drops a bit but since all those teams next to them also lost it wont be too bad...maybe #23. Wisconsin probably falls out of the top 25.
Best guess at pollsters top 15:
- FSU
- Auburn
- Baylor
- Ole Miss
- Notre Dame (fergodsakes)
- Miss State
- Alabama
- Oregon
- MSU
- Oklahoma
- Georgia
- A&M
- OSU
- UCLA
- TCU
October 5th, 2014 at 2:48 AM ^
Today was an absurd day.
And of course so far I think MSU is the best team in the conference. Everyone on here told me they were going to take a step back though? Funny how that doesn't happen when you've got a coach where everything is rolling and develops players. They just plug more in every year.
October 5th, 2014 at 3:00 AM ^
Magnum PI and I said the same about 7 games in last year and got shredded every week in message boards. I am sure some people are still waiting for MSU not to ever replace Greg Jones.
Cook played like shit today, they had 3 turnovers in the 1st half, and still were up 27-3 until they mentally relaxed early in the 4th. That's the benefit of death doom defenses. Right now when you look at MSU you basically concede the run game (Oregon couldnt get any runs off until the 4th) and attack via the air. Coach Kelly did that last year to beat a MSU.
Its a VERY smart system FOR THE BIG 10 - would be far less effective in the Pac 12, SEC, or Big 12. Plenty of throwing air raid type teams with viable QBs. Which is why Stanford was a good matchup for them last year - vs Oregon or hell ASU or UCLA. If you go play MSU with a run based system (or QB) you die. Basically they destroyed Abdullah and gave Tommy Armstrong the Denard Robinson treatment - I am sure Narduzzi had the same game plan dusted off. That final score tonight was not indicative of the domination thru 3 quarters.
Will be interesting to see how much JT Barrett's arm improves between now and when they hit EL. You need to beat MSU over the top; I expect OSU's run game to be stuffed to pieces.
October 5th, 2014 at 3:09 AM ^
you said.
Their preparation for each opponent is outstanding. I watched MSU change defense at least a dozen times all correctly based on the QB's calls. They just know whats coming. It wasn't until Nebraska went 4 and 5 wide that State had trouble, because Nebraska rarely showed that this year and MSU wasn't as prepared for it.
I'd love to sit on the scout meeting with Michigan and Michigan State, I bet I'd be astounded at the difference.
You can pass on them, but only if you 1) have a good offensive line 2) can go 4 or 5 wide. 3 wide doesn't even phase them.
Also a ridiculous punt return to narrow the score at a perfect time doesn't hurt.
October 5th, 2014 at 3:19 AM ^
Yes I know. I just dont want to get downvoted 100x for saying MSU is very well coached and can diagnose stuff like nobody's business because I already went thru the ringer last year for saying these things.
THere are a lot of little things that impress me - their blitzes get home so often (vs Big 10 competition, forget Oregon for now), they sniff out misdirection plays so well, they seem to almost always have a spy on the RB when he tries to sneak out of the backfield to catch a pass, etc. Plus they usually tackle pretty damn well, and they swarm like a mofo. Sure they have breakdowns - they are not a pro team but the regurgitation of knowledge from their defensive staff to their players is impressive. It feels like they have an extra 15 hrs a week of prep time versus our defense. Hence what I mean by the transfer of knowledge from coach to player - it is one thing for coaches to sit there 80 hrs a week and study opponents but you need to be able to make it absorbable for players in a limited amount of time. Whatever they are doing - its top of the line in that regard.
Basically their defense is to the Big 10 what Beilein's guards and wings are to the Big 10. They are interchangeable, year after year, new faces, same results - and they get better as the year goes by. It's annoying but it's not going away until Dantonio retires.
October 5th, 2014 at 8:11 AM ^
Anybody who downvoted you for making that obvious and irrefutable statement is either a pathetic homer or an idiot. A lot of fans around here seem to be both.
October 5th, 2014 at 3:20 AM ^
Which is why right now I'd have no problem with Pat Narduzzi or Dan Mullen as our next head coach.
Don't give me the bs that ''Oh well we don't know if Dantonio is running the defense or if it's Narduzzi'' crap. We know exactly why Texas A&M wanted Narduzzi as DC a couple years ago.
October 5th, 2014 at 7:30 AM ^
Texas A&M wanted Narduzzi as their DC so therefore he'd be a good HC?
At this point, Dan Mullen seems a much surer bet than Narduzzi considering Mullen's getting it done as an HC already.
October 5th, 2014 at 3:42 AM ^
They still got blitzed by Oregon. MSU being the best team in the conference has more to do with the entire conference being down than how good MSU is.
October 5th, 2014 at 3:50 AM ^
I wish people would stop with the revisionist history about that game. They didn't get blitzed. Things started to go wrong in the 4th quarter. If they played 10 times I think MSU wins at least 5 times.
And who's fault is it for the entire conference being down except them? We heard the same excuse last year. And even when it wasn't down in 2010 they won a share of the big ten title.
Fuck you for being one of the spin doctors that always attempts to twist things around when they win something. It's god damn annoying.
October 5th, 2014 at 8:33 AM ^
It's so fu*king annoying. MSU has a legit and well-oiled program. They are miles ahead of us, yet most of the fans don't want to admit it because "We're Michigan Fergodsakes". Well grow up. Michigan State at this point in time is a much better job than Michigan is.
Does that mean I would trade hoke for Dantonio? NO! while Dantonio is without a doubt the better x's and o's coach, Brady is the better at preparing kids for life. So give me 4-8 season's all day as long as Hoke has our player's best interest's at heart.
October 5th, 2014 at 10:24 AM ^
Y'know, there's something about the whole "leaders and best" that leads me to think that maybe we should try for somebody who's both an excellent coach and an ethical coach at the same time.
October 5th, 2014 at 10:41 AM ^
with you, but those types of coach's are few and far between, and the mess that is Michigan football isn't going to attract one of them. Why come here and deal with this disaster when there are plenty of comparable programs out there without all of the stupid politics a Michigan coach has to deal with? We're just not going to get them. So let's be happy with what we have: a coach who isn't great on the field but is amazing in leading our young men to becoming alumni we can be proud of.
October 5th, 2014 at 9:13 AM ^
They lost by 19 points. You don't get to pick and choose which quarters agree with your point of view.
I didn't say that the BIg10 being down is there fault, but the fact remains that it is. MSU has beaten who exactly of substance. The Nebreska team that came ever so close to using to Mcneese St? Are you really going to argue that the Big10 isn't down?
You act like MSU is Alabama or FSU. They aren't.
You need to chill out. Its also extremely annoying that all you seem to most is MSU that and MSU this.
October 5th, 2014 at 9:49 AM ^
who half his posts are arguing that MSU is overrated. It has become one note and much more wrong than right.
October 5th, 2014 at 8:06 AM ^
but does Dantonio actually care about his players? I forget the guy's name, something Winston I believe, where Dantonio picked him up from prison and drove him directly to the practice field. That sounds like a "quality" coach to me who cares what happens to his players....I'll take hoke every day of the week and twice on Sunday over dantonio
October 5th, 2014 at 2:54 AM ^
aweful pre-season rankings?
More fun in the SEC next week with Ole Miss/TAM, Miss St/Auburn Missouri/Georgia plus games like Oregon/UCLA
October 5th, 2014 at 3:04 AM ^
Awful would be if #3-#8 lost and everyone in the #11-#20 won. Then they should all have been flip flopped. This was devastation everywhere in the top 20. To say its bad ranking would mean the teams currently with 2 losses in the 20s-30s should be in the top 10.
A&M was the one team that was very badly ranked ... and LSU. A&M was vulnerable last week at home to a ho hum Arkansas. They DO NOT play defense. Ever. So when the offense stalls - as even the best teams do 2-3x a year - they have nothing to fall back on.
And the Pac 12 has no great team. Stanford has taken a step back, and Oregon has average OL/DL. Teams like USC, UCLA, ASU are fine teams but not top 10 types.
There is no one in the ACC outside of FSU (Clemson already 2 losses). There is no one in the Big 10 outside MSU and OSU. And OSU only because their coach somehow made a brand new OL and QB into a real outfit in 3 weeks.
And Bama is not what it has been 2-4 years ago. Teams like Ole Miss and MSU and Auburn will trade losses in the coming weeks. No great teams out there this year IMO.
October 5th, 2014 at 8:14 AM ^
The disparity in basic, fundamental coaching ability between U-M on one hand and MSU/OSU on the other is glaring.
October 5th, 2014 at 2:55 AM ^
1. Auburn
2. FSU
3. Mississippi State
4. Baylor
5. Ole Miss
6. ND
7. Bama
8. Oregon
9. MSU
10. Oklahoma
At top 10. The rest of the poll? No idea. I expect to see unranked team to make their debut like Arizona who could possibly vault themselves into top 15.
October 5th, 2014 at 3:07 AM ^
Good point, I forgot about Arizona. They might get up there around where I had OSU in the 13-15 range.
October 5th, 2014 at 2:57 AM ^
Why do you rank MSU at #9? Thats pretty low. Seeing as the 5 of the top ten teams lost, MSU is set pretty well to jump into the top 5.
In my opinion it'll end up looking something like
- Florida St
- Auburn
- Baylor
- Notre Dame
- MSU
- Ole Miss
- Miss St
- Oregon
- Bama
- Georgia
- Oklahoma
- OSU
- Oklahoma St.
- TAMU
- TCU
October 5th, 2014 at 3:11 AM ^
Why would I rank MSu ahead of two undefeated SEC West teams? Ole Miss and Miss State are 5-0 each. They each beat a top 10 team this week. MSU beat a top 20 team and has a loss. No way they should be 5. And they should not be ranked ahead of Oregon until Oregon drops 2 games as they lost the head to head with Oregon. And Bama's loss was at the last second to an undefeated Ole Miss on the road - MSU lost by 19 on the road.
That's why #9. That puts them as the #3 1 loss team in the country (behind Bama and Oregon)- not bad for a team with 3 wins vs baby seals and a 5 pt win over Nebraska.
October 5th, 2014 at 3:13 AM ^
Man. What a day.
Here's something funny: Wazzu should be leading the Pac-12 North at 2-0. However, they lost on a missed field goal from the 2 yard line with time expiring. In said game Connor Halladay also passed for 730 yards. Just a new NCAA record and stuff, no biggie. My Lord! Utah looked pretty good beating UCLA as well and in all honesty I'm pretty intrigued with the Pac-12 these days.
My unadultered top 8:
Auburn
Florida St. I guess
Mississippi St.
Notre Dame
Baylor
Georgia
Sparty
Ole Miss
HM: Oklahoma St., Bama, Arizona, Oregon
October 5th, 2014 at 3:34 AM ^
And Oregon was a horrid call in their favor vs WSU from being 0-2 to kick off the Pac 12 season! Parity!
I just think the variance factor in the Pac 12 and SEC is so high from week to week due to the offenses. On an given week a Washington State, Arizona State, Arizona, UCLA can put up 50 pts . So if you are a top 5 type team in the Pac 12 you have to be perfect constantly. Meanwhile MSU last year was beating Minnestota 7-0 deep into the 4th quarter before winning 14-0. You can't get away with that type of play in the SEC or Pac 12. There is a lot more room for error in the ACC and Big 10 for the top teams. FSU had a game like that last year where they sucked but it was Boston College.
Even the Big 12 has that issue - you pick the wrong week to be down versus 7-5 Texas Tech and you can get blitzed 50-31. A 7-5 Minnesota or Iowa is not going to do that to you. If Indiana had any defense they would be the 1 team like that in the Big 10.
October 5th, 2014 at 3:25 AM ^
Ole Miss and Miss State play on the last game of the year (ala OSU-UM) ; might be a huge game although I think both will have 1-2 losses by then. Miss State has to play Bama and Auburn, and Ole Miss has Auburn and A&M. Auburn of course has everyone - Bama, A&M, both teams from Miss.
And this is excluding LSU which is looking average this year. With the Miss teams being relevant this division has gone from brutal to 10 degrees of ridiculous. Imagine if LSU were at full strength.
October 5th, 2014 at 6:10 AM ^
October 5th, 2014 at 8:13 AM ^
October 5th, 2014 at 9:32 AM ^
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October 5th, 2014 at 9:24 AM ^
Might be the first year the Egg Bowl actually matters
October 5th, 2014 at 9:24 AM ^
is just well coached, the players don't have as many screw-ups as ours either it seems. Someone above mentioned it, they seem to have an extra 15 hours of preparation. I don't think they'll get into the playoff though; seems like the winner of ACC-assuming it will be FSU, winner of SEC, PAC12 champ-probably oregon despite loss, they beat State, and the BIG 12 winner-still think Oklahoma gets in. I don't see State getting in playoff, ND will ahead of them.
October 5th, 2014 at 10:12 AM ^
...before teams in the Top 25 made losing cool.
#Hipstercred
October 5th, 2014 at 10:21 AM ^
It's gonna be a great season.
So we got that going for us, which is nice.
October 5th, 2014 at 10:27 AM ^
I can't believe he has turned around the program this fast. I was for sure that they were going to lose 9 games this year. Man he gets his players to play.
October 5th, 2014 at 11:05 AM ^
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October 5th, 2014 at 12:11 PM ^
this used to be so much fun when teams would lose ahead of michigan and the speculation would ensue on where michigan would be ranked.
October 5th, 2014 at 12:28 PM ^
I am so glad we have a minor semblence of a playoff structure this year- too much politics, let the field decide. Wish it were 8 or 16 teams