Aside from the various conference title games, there’s plenty of other good action to keep you on your seat in college football this weekend. Such as:

1) #2 Oregon at Oregon State— The annual “Civil War” battle between the Beavers and Ducks has lost a lot of its luster since Oregon State’s season descended to mediocrity (in a decidedly mediocre conference.) Whatever glimmer of hope we got for a decent game after Oregon State beat USC was tempered by a 38-0 whitewash from Stanford. Before you tell me “It’s a rivalry game! Anything can happen!” remember that Oregon has been held under 42 points once all season and Oregon State lost by 17 to Washington State. Unfortunately for TCU, the Ducks win in a laugher.

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The latest stunner in college football realignment has a dose of irony sprinkled in: Texas Christian University, the team with the best shot at striking a blow for the have-nots of college football, will take their leave of the Mountain West conference and join the Big East in all sports starting in 2012.

This is a major shift, arguably one of the biggest of all the conference moves, for the following reasons:

1) If you can’t beat ’em, join ’em— Look, no one’s saying TCU decided fighting the good fight for the non-BCS schools was too much work and joined the dark side, but there’s no denying the reality that TCU no longer has to deal with the politics, upturned noses, and outright bias that go along with being a non-automatic qualifier. And it’s not like TCU hasn’t been cranking out 10-win seasons like they’re on an assembly line. This team is going to an auto-bid conference at just the right time.

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The biggest shakeup in the BCS standings this week didn’t even occur in the Top 5. Sure, TCU embarrassed Utah (more on that later), but the major event was #6 Alabama losing to #10 LSU.

As I wrote last week, Alabama was the prime one-loss candidate to jump the best non-automatic qualifier TCU in the BCS Standings, but the Tide’s second loss eliminated them from the discussion, and the closest one-loss team to the Horned Frogs is LSU. The difference between the Tigers and TCU is so vast (.9259 to .8170) and LSU is unlikely to get into the SEC Title Game. With a mediocre remaining schedule, it would be next to impossible for them to vault an unbeaten TCU. Read the rest of this entry »

Boise State, Utah and TCU should be cursing Missouri and Michigan State right about now. The Spartans and Tigers both lost, putting Alabama directly behind the three BCS busters in the most recent BCS standings, and that could kill the trio’s hopes of a Championship Game appearance.

More on that in a second. For now, let’s start at the top, where Auburn and Oregon have a massive lead in the top two spots. There’s no point in debating Oregon’s mostly awful schedule; if they and Auburn run the table, there will be no BCS-busting this season. Read the rest of this entry »

Week 2 of the BCS standings saw a monumental shift, as Oklahoma’s loss–which really confirmed what the poll voters long believed–made the glimmer of hope for non-BCS schools a little stronger, although they still have to hope for some help.

Auburn slides comfortably into the top spot, aided by a #1 ranking in three of the six computers. Despite being ranked third in both polls, the Tigers strength of schedule puts them ahead of Oregon and Boise State, both of whom are getting killed in the computer rankings. However, history has taught us that, by the end of the year, the polls are what matter, so Auburn will need to rise in the polls–and should have every chance to do so. Read the rest of this entry »

With the first official BCS standings released last night, I figured it would be pertinent to have a weekly reaction post. It’s early, and there’s a 95% chance all of this will look different in five weeks, but for now, here are my thoughts:

I was surprised to see Oklahoma at #1. But they’re not only the top-ranked team, they’re comfortably ahead of Oregon and Boise State. The Ducks are ranked number one in both the Harris Poll and the coaches’ poll, while the Sooners are 4th and 3rd respectively. But the computers love Oklahoma, and have them at #1, while Oregon is 8th in the computer rankings. Boise State is ranked 3rd in the BCS, but their weak upcoming schedule means they’ll need a lot of help to rise in the computer rankings. Read the rest of this entry »

With the fourth week of college football behind us, here are the biggest stories from the weekend:

1. Boise Still Rolling: Boise State got their first taste of the ESPN College Gameday crew and did not disappoint, surviving several special teams mistakes and beating Oregon State 37-24. The Broncos remain third in the coaches’ poll, and closed their gap with #2 Ohio State ever so slightly. They still need either the Buckeyes or Alabama to lose at least once, but if those teams trip up, Boise could slide into one of the top two spots.

However, the biggest boost to the Broncos may be the emergence of the Nevada Wolfpack in the Top 25. Nevada is 4-0, ranked for the first time since 1948, and Colin Kapernick’s squad has a good shot at being 11-0 when they host Boise on November 26.

2. Tide Survives: Alabama almost relinquished the top spot in the polls against Arkansas, but down 20-7 in the third quarter at SEC rival Arkansas, the Crimson Tide showed why they’re the defending national champions, scoring the final 17 points, including the game-winning touchdown run by Mark Ingram with 3:18 to go. The Alabama defense also made a big statement, allowing just three points in the second half and intercepting Razorback quarterback Ryan Mallett three times. Read the rest of this entry »

With conference play (mostly) upon us, there’s a full slate of compelling games for the fourth week of the college football season, so let’s take a look at the best of the best.

Reminder: All ranking reflect the USA Today coaches poll, which has a bearing on the BCS.

#1 Alabama at #11 Arkansas— Boy, Mark Ingram didn’t miss a step, did he? The Crimson Tide’s Heisman winner came back with a bang last week and lit up Duke in another easy ‘Bama win. This week promises to be more challenging, as the 11th-ranked Razorbacks figure needs to put up some points behind Heisman candidate Ryan Mallet, who has thrown for over 1,000 yards in three games. The game is the first of three straight contests the Tide will play against ranked conference foes. Read the rest of this entry »

According to ESPN, the Pac-10 will soon have twelve teams, as the Utah Utes are expected to leave the Mountain West (MWC) and join Colorado as the newest members of the Pac-10.

This is a huge pickup for the Pac-10, which adds another strong program to their conference, especially during a time when conference powerhouse USC could struggle following NCAA sanctions. The Utes went undefeated in 2004 and 2008, winning the Fiesta Bowl and Sugar Bowl respectively. They went 10-3 last season.

The big loser in this move? The MVC and, by extension, Boise State. The Mountain West gains a marquee program, and then loses one a week later. While the Broncos are probably slightly better from a football standpoint, the Boise market is only the 112th biggest in the U.S., whereas the Salt Lake City market is 31st. At the end of the day, this makes the expansion game, at best, a wash for the conference. Read the rest of this entry »