Badgers blessed in rankings; more Designated Reads
![Badgers blessed in rankings; more Designated Reads Badgers blessed in rankings; more Designated Reads](https://www.si.com/.image/c_fill,w_720,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/MTY4MjYzMjc1NTUyNjQ2MzA5/ap78379360387jpg.jpg)
Perhaps voters merely admired Bret Bielema's timely icing of Utah State's kicker to seal a win over the WAC. Yes. They must have. (AP)
![Bret Bielema](https://www.si.com/.image/t_share/MTY4MjYzMjc2MDkxMjIxMTU3/bret-bielema.jpg)
• Down in a poll. Feelin' so small. Alabama and LSU perch atop the AP Poll. This, for the moment, does not worry us. They will play each other and this will sort itself out for real this time and we continue to believe we will not be subjected to a re-rematch. We must believe. Of greater concern for us, as usual, is what is going on in the bottoms of this exercise in folly we, as a society, continue to refer to as the "Coaches' Poll." Wisconsin is ranked. This is problematic and dumb. There are a dozen other stupidities lurking behind this link; can you spot them all?
• Get those Lorax costumes pressed. We're just a couple short weeks away from the restart of the Harvey Updyke trial, and while from an entertainment standpoint we truly resent this being staged during football season, it's probably best to get it over with while the whole state's distracted with football good and football bad.
• Mark Richt, refined meanie. Folks ask us sometimes if we miss cussing a blue streak on the job. We do not, because there are ways to make one's point without uttering so much as a "consarnit" if you really work at it. It's like writing poetry with a very strict verse structure. Consider this, from Mark Richt on Sunday, on the subject of Week 4 UGA opponent Vanderbilt: “They have a lot of belief, and they’re playing to win it. They’re doing a good job of it.” The Commodores (1-2) recorded their first win of the season Saturday against Presbyterian, after losing in consecutive weeks to South Carolina and Northwestern.
• LOL TWINSIES. Oddities from Week 3 game notes: Georgia and Georgia Tech both won their Saturday contests 56-20, and Clemson and South Carolina are both in the top ten for the first time in polling history.
• Injury report story hour.Bo Pelini returned to work on Sunday following his mid-game hospitalization ... Notre Dame safety Jamoris Slaughter is done for the year (Achilles tear) ... Minnesota quarterback MarQueis Gray could miss a month of playing time (high ankle sprain) ... Oklahoma State quarterback Wes Lunt's status is unknown for Week 5, as is the exact nature of his knee injury ... Nebraska running back Rex Burkhead will not return to action before his MCL sprain has completely healed ... Miami long snapper Sean McNally will undergo season-ending knee surgery, per a school release ... also scheduled for season-ending knee surgery is Tennessee safety Brian Randolph ... Indiana quarterback Cam Coffman is back at practice after suffering what Kevin Wilson's calling "a slight hip pointer."
• Roster blotter. Former Alabama juco import Travis Dixon will enroll instead at Washington.
• Quote of the day. "You guys write the stories. We play the football." -- Stanford DE Ben Gardner.
Misc.
That Arkansas Lady With Tape On Her Nose