1. Ohio State- Tricky game in East Lansing looms.

2. Florida- Wins at Tennessee and at Home against LSU places Gators to #2.

3. WVU- Still could be the best team in the nation ( Steve Slaton and Pat White are undefeated as college starters at 13-0). I'll revisit this issue after the WVU-Louisville Big East clash.

4. Michigan- You could place the Wolverines at 2 or 3 and it would be on target.

5. Louisville- The Cards are still rolling without Brohm. He will be back next week jus tin time to get back to form before the WVU game.

6. USC- The Trojans have struggled against the two Washington teams in the last two weeks. FIve-10 years ago that would have been allowed. However, this isn't your Bill Clinton's Cougars and Huskies anymore. Thus, the Trojans fall.

7. Tennessee- Rocky Top is back and the Vols offense is among the best in the Nation. Think the Ainge family is happy OC Cutcliffe is back in Knoxville? 51 points in Athens. I'm thinking so.

8. Texas- Will we really know how good the Longhorns are this year? A Blow out loss to OSU didn't reveal anything other than the defending National Champs were not ready for the elite of college football in the early season. Also, Beating Oklahoma doesn't eactly warrant a chest thumping outbreak in Austin. Playing the rest of the Big 12 schedule might not tell us as well.

9. Cal- The Golden Bears can be forgiven for their loss in Knoxville. The Cal offense is back to its old ways. That doesn't bode well for Pac-10 defenses. USC looms later in the season.

10. Notre Dame- The Irish are doing what they are suppose to do after the Michigan debacle. If they win out and just lose to USC, the Irish will go BCS Bowlin again this year.

11. Arkansas- The Razorbacks exposed ALLBARN for the fraud they were by smacking the Tiggers down on the Plains. Irons and COX ( who Auburn fans had no reservations telling you were among the best in the country at their positions) were bullied around all day. Sensational RB Derrick Mcfadden's name should replace Iron's name as the best Running back in the SEC.

12. Missouri- Yes the Tigers. Missouri is off to a very fast start blowing out most teams in the process. Who thought losing Brad Smith from last year's team would be the best thing to happen to Missouri?

1. Ohio State .....still the favorites
2. Southern Cal ......undefeated thru extremely tough schedule (Arkansas, Nebraska, Washington, and Washington State are 17-2 not including their losses to USC)
3. Florida ......wins against Tenn and LSU prove they are for real
4. Michigan .....getting better and better
5. Texas ....impressive win against OU--they're back
6. Louisville ....hesitant about this, their best win was against Miami
7. California .....might be runner-ups in the killer PAC-10
8. Notre Dame.....see I even rank teams I don't like
9. Clemson ....are they here because they are this good or just real lucky against Wake?
10. Tennessee .....44 points in the second half against what was supposed to be a great UGA defense
11. West Virginia .....ALERT! ALERT !! Generous ranking--they're still #15 in Sagarin's ratings
12. Iowa ....only loss was to Ohio State which isn't too embarassing

1. Ohio State
2. USC
3. Florida
4. Michigan
5. WVU
6. Louisville
7. Texas
8. Notre Dame
9. Clemson
10. Tennessee
11. Ga. Tech
12. Auburn

Knocking on the door: California

Stevie,

Aside from your WVU bias, how can you rank the Bears ahead of Tennessee when Cal lost by 20 points in Knoxville?

1. Ohio State
2. Florida
3. Michigan
4. Southern Cal
5. Louisville
6. West Virginia
7. Tennessee
8. Texas
9. California
10. Boise State
11. Clemson
12. Notre Dame

1. Ohio State
2. Florida
3. USC
4. Michigan
5. Texas
6. Tenn
7. WVU
8. Louisville
9. Clemson
10. Notre Dame
11. Auburn
12. LSU

I'll field this one. It's starting to look like that game was a fluke. First game jitters, ill-prepared, I dunno, but I think IF (and I know that if "if's and but's were candy and nuts it would be Christmas all year round) but IF that Week One game was played this week, we'd see the Bears scoring mid-40's while Tenn would be floundering mid-20's. I have no problem saying the Cal Bears are one of the two best teams wearing Blue and Gold. (Michigan being the other.) My Top 12 coming shortly.

USC has been lucky their past few games-they're riding on their laurels this season

Cal is the best team in the Pac-10

watch them play and it's clear that they're the best one loss team in the nation and their loss to Tennessee was a fluke

if they played the game today, Cal would roll

1. Ohio State
2. Michigan
3. Florida
4. USC
5. Cal
6. Texas
7. Notre Dame
8. WVU
9. Tennessee
10. Louisville
11. Iowa
12. Boise State

1. WVU
2. Florida
3. Michigan
4. O$U
5. Louisville
6. Texas
7. Tennessee
8. California
9. Missouri
10. U$C
11. Clemson
12. Notre Dame

Interesting week. Top 4 you could put in a hat and draw names for who is #1. U$C..pffft. Hope the refs are happy with their paychecks from them.

1.OSU
2.WVU
3.Michigan
4.Louisville
5.Cal
6.Florida
7.Tennessee
8.USC
9. Missouri
10. Iowa
11. Texas
12. Rutgers

1. Ohio St.
2. Floirida
3. Michigan
4. USC
5. Cal
6. Louisville
7. West Virginia
8. Texas
9. Tennessee
10. Notre Dame
11. Clemson
12. Georgia Tech

1. Ohio St.
2. Florida
3. Cal
4. Michigan
5. West Virginia
6. Texas
7. Louisville
8. Tennessee
9. USC
10. Notre Dame
11. Clemson
12. Iowa

NO disrespect to you Cal supporters, but any team that loses by 20 points in the early season ( as Cal did to UT) doesn't deserve to be placed ahead of that team or any undefeated team.


I love Cal's offense. The Bears skill position players are special. However, you can't overlook this Cal team lost by 20 points in the early season just as Texas fans need to hope all undefeated teams lose one game for their name to be reinserted into National Champioinship discussions.

When a playoff ( 16 or 32 teams) gets mandated by the NCAA, then one loss wont mean an end to National Championship asiprations.

1. OSU
2. Florida
3. Michigan
4. Louisville
5. Clemson
6. West Virginia
7. Texas
8. Georgia Tech
9. Tennessee
10. California
11. Missouri
12. USC

2 ACC teams in the top 10? Huh?

C'mon PSUlion. F$U sucks and that's the only team Clemson has beaten. Yet you rank 1 loss Clemson team ahead of undefeated WVU?

Then you have Georgia Tech who almost lost to Maryland and WOULD have had it not been for a fumble and interception on MD's 15 yard line late in the game that GT converted as a TD's...the same Maryland team that WVU absolutely destroyed on ESPN on Sept. 14th 45-24 (with 14 of those points coming in the second half against the 2nd and third team defense since we had a 38-10 halftime lead.)

Face it. The ACC sucks. They do not have one single undefeated team in that conference and the only reason I ranked Clemson at 11 is because there is slim pickin's on undefeated and 1 loss teams and I do believe that Clemson is the ACC's best...yet there is no way in hell Clemson should be ranked ahead of WVU after they lost to a mediocre BC team.

But hey, everyone has their opinions. Just thought I'd state mine also.

This is where we're going to have to disagree. I know all you have in the Big East is "undefeated" because let's face it, that's the only thing getting you to the post season. Only one team from the Big East will play a meaningful post season game and it will be either WVU or Louisville and that will be decided 11/2. Done. You guys have it easy.

To me a team like Cal or Texas from the major leagues who have made concerted efforts to learn from their mistakes and grow and frankly DOMINATE every game since deserve all the accolades that the undefeated's in the minor leagues are getting. But that's just my opinion.

And FYI, my rankings are ranked for football next week in as much as I believe the number one team would beat 2-12 this weekend. 2 would beat 3-12, 3 would beat 4-12 on down. That's just how I do it and I think Cal has so much depth that they are gonna be a force the rest of the year.

1. Ohio State
2. USC
3. Florida
4. Michigan
5. Louisville
6. West Virginia
7. Texas
8. Tennessee
9. California
10. Boise State
11. Clemson
12. Missouri

Please tell us who West Virginia has beaten. Anyone in the Top 50 ?? Even played anyone in the Top 50 ?? Yet you put them ahead of Florida, USC, and Ohio State who have beaten multiple ranked teams. Maybe the next time you want to criticize someone's top 10, don't.

let it go SR

Until WVU plays someone worth it (Louisville game), I refuse to rank them above the current position.

Clemson deserves to be up there, considering their evolution over this season. Yes Georgia Tech does deserve to be up there as this MD game can highly be considered their slow game (See: WVU vs. ECU game...don't get me started on that one).

Other than that, the pickin's are slim this year. Most every team has looked like crap in some regard in some game....it's just a matter of who screws up the less.

1. Ohio State
2. West Virginia
3. USC
4. Michigan
5. Florida
6. Louisville
7. Texas
8. Tennessee
9. California
10. Auburn
11. Notre Dame
12. Iowa

1. Ohio State
2. Florida
3. Michigan
4. USC
5. Louisville
6. Texas
7. Tennessee
8. California
9. West Virginia
10. Auburn
11. Iowa
12. Clemson

lol Lion.

So WVU "only" beating ECU by 17 was a "slow game" but GT eeking out a win against a crappy Maryland team by 4 points on a turnover near the end of game when WVU ABSOLUTELY DESTROYED Maryland is comparable? We were beating Maryland 28-0 in the FIRST QUARTER. That's more points than GT scored the whole game.
BTW, GT beat UVA 24-7. ECU beat UVA 31-21 and UVA scored a TD with 18 seconds left in the game. Not really much of a difference there, is there?

hmmm...

Oh and for all the Texas lovers...Besides getting bitchslapped by OSU at home, who has Texas played? #23 Oklahoma? Please. Minus the OSU game, Texas has played a very average schedule including Rice, Sam Houston State, North Texas, and Iowa State yet people still think they deserve to be ranked in the top 10. Where's all the yapping about their weak schedule? (OSU doesn't factor in because it was a LOSS)...
Not only that, but their schedule for the remainder or the year is WORSE than WVU's remaining schedule...but you can bet your ass no one will run their mouth if they end up in the top 5 at the end of the regular season with only one, MAYBE 2 wins over top 25 teams and that's IF Oklahoma and Nebraska end up ranked.

A'll back up and address W-Dog's inquiry. The extra BCS game was implemented to allow 2 extra teams access to the BCS. We were told it would allow for an exceptional team who was undefeated or with one loss from the MWC, WAC, CUSA, or maybe the MAC conferences a better opportunity to place their chamption in the BCS. ALso, it woud give power conferences an opportunity to place more at large teams in most years.


I address some points on this board.


MadDog stated "CAL" plays in a Major Conference ( laughing at this) it should be held in higher esteem than WVU. Even though WVU is undefeated and Cal was PUNKED at Tennesseee and aside from beating Oregon who the jury is still out on if they are a good team. Cal's schedule is no better than WVU's. Maryland is comparable to Oregon this year. East Carolina is better or as good as Airizona State. Also, You can't count a loss as part of how rough a schedule is by chest thumping to being outclassed in Knoxville.

I think I need to give some of you left coast guys need this injection of taste of East coast reality.



ALso, let me go on record as saying Its cute and all the Bears just found out what a football was 5 years ago without the Stanford Band showing them the path to the endzone.

WVU has been playing and winning in Major College football long before CAL could even score a touchdown against the UCLA's, Washington USC's of their conference. THis notion that "CAL" plays bigtime football compared to WVU is comical. What is so bigtime? Who exactly has CAL beaten? Didn't Cal play a non-bcs team in their bowl game last year and ended with a 8-4 record? Aside from USC, what is so great about the Pac-10? How many times has Cal beaten USC in the 5 or even 20 years? How many BCS type bowls has Cal played in during the last 15 years compared to WVU's 3 ( 2 Sugar and 1 Fiesta). How many other New Year Day Bowl games has Cal played in to WVU's 9 ( this doesn't include WVU's non-New Year day bowl games) in the last 25 years? So, excuse me as a chuckle as you place "MAJOR" by Cal's name and attempt to devalue the soon to be 15th winningest College football program in the nation- WVU.


So, what makes CAL so special this year? Who have they beaten? LOL Yes, the same CAL team that was getting punked by Tennessee 35-3 ( the score in the 3rd quarter before UT got bored) in the opening game. You are comparing this CAL team to WVU's team? LOL! A WVU team that was a top 5 team last year and returns everyone who has probably the two best sophomores in America leading them as Pat White and Steve Slaton have yet to lose a game while their in the lineup in college? You actually think Cal could hold WVU's jock strap?

This is even more comical than reading some of the Bay Area papers on the arrogance of CAL/Pac-10 before the game. Being a UT alum, it was rather enjoyable seeing CAL run back to the left coast with its tail between its leg when it was introduced to BIG TIME football in the SEC. Now you are championing CAL as a National power and dismissing this game? LOL! Please.


Here is the difference between CAL and WVU:

CAL gets embarrased when it visits SEC country against the the SEC"s number 3 or 4 best team- Tennessee . Again, 35-3 in the 3rd quarter- ENOUGH SAID.


WVU plays the SEC CHAMPION in their backyard and uppe rcuts them in the Sugar Bowl with FRESHMAN running all over the Georgia Dome on Georgia's #5 ranked defense.



Nice Spin.

Cal or any of its skill players couldn't hold WVU's jock. Also, its cute you reference the Pac-10 as a MAJOR conference. The reality is it s the SEC. Then the 5 other BCS conferences ( BE, ACC, Big 12, Pac-10, Big 10), and then the Non-BCS conference. That's the pecking order.

Ummm what? ECU is 2-3 1-1 CUSA with losses to Navy, UAB, and Virginia., ASU is 3-2 0-2 Pac10 with its only losses to Cal and Oregon, While ASU is looking like crap this year, They don't look THAT crappy..

Furthermore, Maryland is comparable to Oregon? or do you mean Oregon State? That is by far the silliest comparison I've ever seen.



What a team does the year before completely does not count the next year. If it did, we'd have to consider Tennessee's losing record, etc. Yes you may have almost the exact same team coming over, but its amazing how things change.

"What a team does the year before completely does not count the next year. If it did, we'd have to consider Tennessee's losing record, etc. Yes you may have almost the exact same team coming over, but its amazing how things change."




LOL! How did you derive that this notion? First, Texas is only ranked in the top 10 because of last year's National Championship run. If not for having Texas on their Jerseys, they wouldn't be a top 10 team. If a team is a top 5 team from last year and returns all of its starters, they are a TOP 5 team UNTIL someone beats them the next year. Its rather simple.


Additionally, your Tennessee reference is flat out wrong. Check out Tennessee's Defense from last year to this this year. Huge difference. Also, the injury of Justin Herrell hurt the Vols badly. Also, the Tennessee had former OC Randy Sanders on the sidelines. This year they have David Cutclifee as OC. This is why UT has re emerged as an elite team this year.


Maryland is just as good as Oregon. The Terripians should have beaten GT in Atlanta last week. Look for Maryland to be a 9-3 or 8-4 ACC team this year which is about what Oregon would be in the ACC. Additionally, Maryland just 4 years ago was a BCS team and 3 years ago played in a New Years Day bowl game. The Terps have been 5-6 the last 2 years, but they will post a good season this year. Moreover, Arizona State is flat awful. No Defense. East Carolina would romp on them as ECU did to UVA.

LOL...the only thing I'm championing is the petition your neighbors are passing around to have the 14 foot naked Steve Slanton photo taken down from the side of your house.

And at this point in this year (which is the year I'm currenly living in) I don't see a scenario where WVU will play Cal so this is all pretty much lip-service (which is something you are really good at! Geez, bro, take a breath!) As much as I like OSU I've enjoyed watching the Cal games more. There's something going very right there and it's fun to watch. Call me a Longshore-man if you must, but I believe they will beat USC.

But I have to hand it to ya, it seems like we live in a world of spin right now and you, my friend, should be in Washington DC.

Wacky weed must be real cheap in West Virginia! Yeah, Oregon and Maryland are about the same, as are West Virginia and Kentucky. Maryland has wins over William & Mary (1-aa), Middle Tennessee, and Florida International--what a powerhouse schedule!

"As much as I like OSU I've enjoyed watching the Cal games more. There's something going very right there and it's fun to watch. Call me a Longshore-man if you must, but I believe they will beat USC."


Pac-10 games are generally very exciting to watch. A lot of Offense ( fluff) when they play each other and no defense. However, it catches up with Pac-10 teams when they play the big dogs ( with exception to USC) OOC.

However, I'm glad that Cal's offenses has "evolved" this year into one that can be mentioned with other explosive offenses like Louisville, WVU, OSU, and so forth.

I'm happy for you, MAN