College Football Top 25 Review

SI Staff | Oct 11, 2010

College Football Top 25 Review /

College Football Top 25 Review

Many cautioned that Alabama was heading into a trap game against a South Carolina team coming off a bye. Those warnings proved correct, as the No. 1 Tide fell to the Gamecocks, 35-21. Stephen Garcia and Marcus Lattimore each registered three touchdowns, while the Gamecocks' defense held the ferocious rushing tandem of Trent Richardson (pictured) and Mark Ingram to 61 combined yards on the ground. It was South Carolina's first-ever win over a team carrying a No. 1 ranking.

Indiana entered this contest averaging 40 points per game, but Ohio State dominated every facet of play. Terrelle Pryor threw for a career-best 334 yards and three touchdowns while the Buckeyes held Hoosiers quarterback Ben Chappell to 108 pass yards, securing Jim Tressel's 100th victory as Ohio State coach in the process.

The legend of LaMichael James continues to grow. The Oregon sophomore amassed 227 total yards and three TDs as the No. 3 Ducks shook off a rough start to rout Wazzu, 43-23.

The Broncos' Jeremy Avery made the most of his eight touches, racking up 68 total yards (42 rushing) and three touchdowns. Unheralded, but highly ranked Boise State has now won 30 of its last 31 games.

A week after his worst game of the season, TCU quarterback Andy Dalton threw for a season-high 270 yards and three touchdowns. Not that the Horned Frogs needed Dalton to explode. The defense held Wyoming to 191 total yards and recorded consecutive shutouts for the first time in 55 years.

It was not a very happy 71st birthday for Kansas State coach Bill Snyder. Nebraska improved to 78-15-2 against K-State thanks to a monster day from freshman quarterback Taylor Martinez, who rushed for 242 yards and four touchdowns and passed for another score. Nebraska's defense dominated as well, holding star K-State tailback Daniel Thomas to 63 yards and the Wildcats to 315 yards as a team.

If Denard Robinson or LaMichael James should slip in the coming weeks, Auburn's Cameron Newton may serve as the ideal Heisman candidate by season's end. Against the Wildcats, the Tigers QB accounted for 408 yards and four TDs, while ensuring Auburn's win with a series of clock-draining first downs amid the stretch run.

The Beavers' Mr. Everything, Jacquizz Rodgers, collected 124 total yards and one TD in the club's road upset. On the season, Oregon State has lost to two top-5 teams (TCU, Boise State) and knocked off one top-10 resident (Arizona).

There may be no stopping Shaky Smithson (top -- 75 yards and one TD) and the highly ranked Utes this season -- and that includes a three-game stretch of Air Force, TCU and Notre Dame, beginning Oct. 30. In the meantime, Utah (5-0) can relish its 41-point drubbing of a Big 12 club.

Ryan Mallett and Arkansas earned some more legitimacy by going on the road and beating a tough nonconference opponent, but the Razorbacks nearly let this one slip away. A&M quarterback Jerrod Johnson attempted a Hail Mary on the final play, but Tramain Thomas picked the pass in the end zone.

With Florida and Miami ranked higher entering Week 6, Florida State staked its claim to being this year's Sunshine State champion -- and then some. To demonstrate that point, Lonnie Pryor (48 yards, 1 TD) and the No. 23 Seminoles blitzed the Hurricanesa and took another huge step toward winning the ACC's Atlantic Division.

Stanford QB Oliver Luck was a model of efficiency in Saturday's thriller, completing 20 of 24 passes for 285 yards and three touchdowns. The Cardinal, which would have essentially fallen three games behind Oregon with a loss, are still in the hunt for the Pac-10 title.

It turns out injury isn't the only thing that can stop Denard Robinson. Michigan State held Michigan's star quarterback in check, limiting him to 215 pass yards, 86 rush yards and two total touchdowns and forcing him into three key interceptions. But ultimately, Michigan's defense was its undoing against MSU. The Spartans trailed midway through the second quarter, but scored 24 unanswered points to secure the Paul Bunyan Trophy for the third year running.

Minnesota wore white helmets and uniforms on an unseasonably hot day, but that didn't help much. The Gophers surrendered five rushing touchdowns to the Badgers, who secured Paul Bunyan's Axe for the seventh straight season.

Oklahoma State entered this contest ranked second nationally in scoring and third in total offense. So the Cowboys probably didn't expect to be trailing 21-17 at halftime. But quarterback Brandon Weeden and Co. scored three touchdowns in the first nine minutes of the second half and never looked back on their way to a 54-28 beatdown.

Who needs field goals? Air Force put on a touchdown show against Colorado State, scoring once on a kickoff return, three times on the ground and three times through the air -- including on a fake field goal in the third quarter.

The decks are now cleared for Vai Taua (214 total yards, 3 TDs) and the potent Wild Pack to focus on No. 4 Boise State next week -- which should easily be the biggest home game in Nevada football history.

The Tigers' shutout win will undoubtedly give older Missouri fans some solace for the 20th anniversary of the infamous 5th Down Game. Of course, to receiver Jerrell Jackson (right -- 3 catches, 51 yards, 1 TD), it simply means a 5-0 start for Mizzou.

Published Oct 11, 2010

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