WEEK 7 COLLEGE FOOTBALL RANKINGS

WEEK SEVEN POWER RANKINGS

25. GT (5-1)
This team is looking shaky. Relegated to their third-string quarterback on Saturday due to injuries, they barely escaped a 2-5 FCS school, Gardner-Webb, with a 10-7 win.  If they don’t get healthy soon, this will be last week in the top 25 for the Yellow Jackets.

24. TCU (5-1)
Their offense struggled against Colorado St., but this is a team that could really boost its stock with a W over BYU this Thursday.

23. VANDERBILT (5-1)
Well, the dream of an undefeated season wasn’t likely in the brutal SEC, but they need to beat teams like Mississippi St. This loss comes a week after shocking the nation with a win over Auburn. Can they sustain the effort of previous weeks?

22. MICHIGAN ST. (6-1)
The Spartans make their top 25 debut in my rankings this week after smacking around Northwestern. Running back sensation, Javon Ringer, will get a great test against Ohio St. next week. If they can pull off the upset, expect Ringer to fly up the Heisman lists.

21. CAL (4-1)
They had a bye week, but they have to be pleased to see Michigan St. starting to get some respect. That early season W is looking better and better.

20. KU (5-1)
That was an important win over Colorado because their schedule is about to get extremely difficult. Next week they head up to Norman to face a furious OU team.

19. USF (5-1)
Their bye week couldn’t have come at a better time.  Hopefully, they’ve regrouped after that embarrassing home loss to Pitt.

18. WF (4-1)
Their Clemson contest wasn’t pretty, but at the end of the day they added to their win column and improved their record in the ACC.  They’re making a habit of winning close (albeit ugly) games.

17. UTAH (7-0)
They took care of business against lowly Wyoming, but that win over Michigan REALLY isn’t looking all that impressive now.

16. UNC (5-1)
Butch Davis continues to work his magic in Chapel Hill. It’s incredible to think that this guy was unemployed two years ago! He and Saban have to be the front-runners for Coach of the Year.

15. VT (5-1)
They remain atop the ACC for now. Their season really hinges on the continued maturation of Tyrod Taylor.

14. BYU (6-0)
I dropped them 5 spots after that less than satisfying effort against New Mexico. How good is this team really?

13. OSU (6-1)
They continue to sneak back up the rankings. A win over Michigan St. next week would help their cause tremendously.

12. BSU (5-0)
They still have a great chance of running the table this year. This is a team that just finds a way to win week after week.

11. LSU (4-1)
Ouch. I never thought I’d see Les Miles’ Tigers get routed by 30 points like they did at Florida. The defending champs looked like they were overmatched at every position on the field.  What happened to that signature defense?

10. TTU (6-0)
Tech won, which is the most important statistic, but they can’t be happy with the game they put together against Nebraska. Given the offensive field days of Virginia Tech and Missouri against the Huskers the last few weeks, I fully expected the Red Raiders to drop 60. Can a team seriously contend for the national championship with this bad of a defense and kicking game?

9. MIZ (4-1)
Give credit to that Oklahoma St. defense for making Chase Daniel look silly. His Heisman campaign may be in jeopardy after throwing three crucial interceptions against the Cowboys, including one in the last minute that sealed the deal. Hard to believe that was the same Mizzou team of the past four weeks.

8. OKST (6-0)
You have to tip your hat to this surprising team. We all knew that they could put up a bunch of points, but who expected their defense to be so solid? Who expected Zac Robinson to be the best quarterback on the field?

7. USC (5-1)
They shut out Rudy Carpenter and the Sun Devils, but there has to be some concern over Mark Sanchez’s three interceptions. Yikes.

6. UGA (5-1)
I’m probably alone on this, but I feel like every time I watch Matthew Stafford he disappoints. Moreno and Green both look like the real deal, but this is a team with far too much firepower to settle for field goals.

5. OU (5-1)
Hard to knock Sam Bradford after the performance he put on against UT’s stiff defense (387 yards, 5 touchdowns). He should still be leading Heisman lists, despite his team’s loss. OU has to run the ball better if they want to have any chance of re-entering the national title race.

4. UF (5-1)
It’s amazing what a running game can do for you. This team would probably be in the top spot this week if it hadn’t been for that Mississippi debacle. After watching the LSU contest, it’s safe to say that there isn’t a faster team in college football than the Gators.

3. ALA (6-0)
Don’t expect the Crimson Tide to stumble at Ole Miss next week. Saban has had two full weeks to prepare.

2. PSU (7-0)
How about Joe Pa’s crew? That decisive rout they put on Wisconsin proved that they’re clearly the team to beat in the Big 10.  This is the best the Nittany Lions have looked in quite some time.

1. UT (6-0)
This is one of the reasons you have to love college football. Nobody was giving the Longhorns any credit going into this season. The secondary was too porous, the quarterback was relapsing, the offensive line couldn’t block anyone, there weren’t any running backs…etc. Even at the half of yesterday’s game, with OU barely leading 21-20, the talking heads were making excuses: “Texas is only in this game because of special teams.”  “Oklahoma is clearly faster and more talented, so UT probably won’t be able to keep up with them in the second half.” 45-35, Texas. Now, they get Missouri at home next week in yet another game that could blow this national title race wide open. I don’t know about you, but I cannot wait to see what other surprises still lie ahead of us in this unpredictable season.