T'is a shame this one doesn't count for the BCS. Check the comments about ND.
CFN 2005 Rankings Week Ten
1. USC (9-0) W, Stanford 51-21 next game: at California
No one is touching this team in Los Angeles. The offense could’ve hung 100 on Stanford if it wanted to go full-throttle for sixty minutes. Things are going so well that the backups are getting more and more meaningful minutes. Yeah, there are concerns with the defense, but the offense makes up for any worries.
2. Texas (9-0) W, at Baylor 62-0 next game: Kansas
Baylor’s defense is a lot better, and this week’s win more impressive, than you might think. While Vince Young and the backs are getting all the glory, the line deserves the credit; someone has to spring the holes to run through. With Virginia Tech out of the picture, now UT just has to hold serve. It might not be a bad thing to get Young out of games earlier.
3. Notre Dame (6-2) W, Tennessee 41-21 next game: Navy
To all those e-mailing us about Notre Dame being third despite two losses, remember that the rankings are based on how good the teams are right now, and not just on merit (that's for the end of the year). No, it's not just because of the Notre Dame brand name. Tennessee’s defense is national-title good (it's the offense that's killing them), and Brady Quinn and the boys moved the ball well. 41 points is 41 points with the D and special teams making some big plays when needed.
4. LSU (7-1) W, Appalachian State 24-0 next game: at Alabama
LSU still has to put together a complete game, but since the pick this week is likely going to be a win over Alabama, it moves into the number four spot. Don’t let the 24-0 win over Appalachian State fool you; ASU would beat about 20 D-I teams and LSU was looking ahead to next week.
5. Alabama (9-0) W, at Mississippi St 17-0 next game: LSU
The defense is fantastic, but has it shut down a really good offense yet? Florida’s offense is the only one on the Tide schedule that’s doing anything. The Tide offense isn’t struggling only able to manage three points against Miss St. Bama needs to beat LSU impressively to move into the top three.
6. Penn State (9-1) W, Wisconsin 35-14 next game: at MSU (Nov. 19)
Wisconsin isn’t nearly as good as ABC made it out to be to hype up the game, but the Nittany Lions still came through with an impressive win. There’s no argument if you want to argue that this is a top four team. The defense is playing tremendously well and Michael Robinson has to be the Big Ten Player of the Year … for now. There’s still the MSU game to deal with.
7. Ohio State (7-2) W, Illinois 40-2 next game: Northwestern
How much would Ohio State love to have that Penn State game back? The offense has opened it up scoring more than 40 points in each of its last three games. It’ll be four in a row after facing Northwestern’s defense next week.
8. Miami (7-1) W, at Virginia Tech 27-7 next game: at Wake Forest
Many would argue the Canes deserve to be much higher after the dominant win over Virginia Tech. On merit, yes, but with Tyrone Moss likely out for the year, Devin Hester hurting, and Kyle Wright still appearing to be average, don’t be floored if a not-as-jacked-up Cane team ends up having mega-problems with either Wake Forest, Virginia or Georgia Tech.
9. Virginia Tech (8-1) L, Miami 27-7 next game: at Virginia (Nov. 19)
Virginia Tech appeared not ready for prime time getting pounded on by the fired up Canes with no run defense when it counted and an awful game by Marcus Vick. Will this be the start of another pre-2004-like swoon? Be very, very worried about at Virginia and North Carolina over the next few weeks.
10. Auburn (7-2) W, at Kentucky 49-27 next game: at Georgia
The Tigers just keep on winning against lousy teams and keep on moving up. Now the real work begins playing at Georgia before the Alabama showdown. Don’t fall asleep on this team in the SEC West title hunt quite yet. Can the Tiger fans really root for Alabama? They need to this week as a Tide win over LSU might make the Iron Bowl a battle for the SEC title game.
11. Florida (7-2) W, Vanderbilt 49-42, 2OT next game: at South Carolina
Call this the shakiest No. 11 pick possible. If Florida really is a fringe top ten team, it should’ve been able to take Vanderbilt behind the woodshed at home. This will be a fun week with the big showdown in Columbia against an old friend, but the team has to play much, much better than it did against Jay Cutler and the Commodores.
12. Georgia (7-1) Didn’t play this week next game: Auburn
Georgia moves way up next week if it beats Auburn convincingly. Forget about the Florida loss; this is a top seven team if D.J. Shockley is healthy. With two weeks to prepare for the Tigers, this is a must-win to get the national attention back after the Cocktail Party.
13. Texas Tech (8-1) W, Texas A&M 56-17 next game: at Oklahoma State
Now that’s how the offense is supposed to look. The Oklahoma game might be tougher than it looks, but 10-1 is more than just a dream after the way the Red Raiders played in the blowout win over Texas A&M.
14. Colorado (7-2) W, Missouri 41-12 next game: at Iowa State
Don’t fall asleep on the Buffs. Pay special attention to how they play against a humming Iowa State this week. A convincing win might mean the Big 12 title game could be a big-time battle for a Texas team looking for a coronation and not a fight.
15. Oregon (8-1) W, California 27-20 OT next game: at WSU
Call this low ranking an indictment of the Pac 10. Oregon should probably be somewhere in the top ten, and it will be after beating WSUand Oregon State. It would be nice if the quarterback situation was 100% settled.
16. Michigan (6-3) Didn’t play this week next game: at Indiana
The win over Penn State is looking better and better. Now the Wolverines are rested for the stretch run with a layup against Indiana to sharpen up for what might be the Big Ten championship game against Ohio State (assuming Penn State loses to Michigan State).
17. Florida State (7-2) L, NC State 20-15 next game: at Clemson
Is there a shakier good team? The Noles will represent the Atlantic Division in the ACC title game, but, for lack of a better word, yuck. The defense has gone bye-bye, while the running game has been completely abandoned. It’s asking too much of Drew Weatherford to carry the team.
18. Northwestern (6-3) W, Iowa 28-27 next game: at Ohio State
Never count out the Cats. Out of all the impressive things Randy Walker’s team has done, win in Columbus this week would be the most impressive. Now that the team is bowl eligible, the pressure is off meaning the team can dream of really, really big things like finishing in a tie at the top of the Big Ten standings. The offense has to be humming on all cylinders to keep up with the red-hot Buckeyes.
19. Wisconsin (8-2) L, at Penn State 35-14 next game: Iowa
The loss to Penn State was expected, but now the team has to crank up the emotion a few notches against Iowa in Barry Alvarez’s final home game. The defense has been miserable, so the offense has to be nearly flawless against the suddenly desperate Hawkeyes.
20. Minnesota (6-3) W, Indiana 42-21 next game: Michigan State
And breathe out. With tough games ahead against Michigan State and at Iowa, the Gophers needed the win at Indiana. It might not have been pretty for a half, but the offense turned it up a few notches in the second half. Now it’s about jockeying for bowl position.
21. West Virginia (7-1) W, Connecticut 45-13 next game: at Cincinnati
West Virginia looked incredible against an overmatched Connecticut team. The defense was flying around the ball, while the offense was crisp and efficient. Yeah, the ranking is probably about five spots too low.
22. UCLA (8-1) L, at Arizona 52-14 next game: Arizona State
You can’t keep playing as poorly as UCLA had without eventually getting blasted. UCLA drops this low because its run defense would get destroyed by the teams ranked in the top 21.
23. South Carolina (6-3) W, at Arkansas 14-10 next game: Florida
The guy did it. Love him or hate him, Steve Spurrier has done wonders getting his Gamecocks to bowl eligibility. Now comes the real fun with Florida coming to town. A win this week would be ten times sweeter than the Tennessee upset.
24. TCU (9-1) W, Colorado State 33-6 next game: UNLV
TCU throttled a decent Colorado State team to win the Mountain West championship. What would the ranking be without the loss to SMU? Probably top 15 with the way the defense plays at home. This team really is that good.
25. Iowa State (6-3) W, Missouri 41-12 next game: Colorado
Admittedly, this is way too low. With Stevie Hicks back and Bret Meyer throwing well, Iowa State just might be the best team in the North. It’ll have a chance to prove it this week against the Buffs. It’s a shame the team couldn’t have turned it on earlier in the Big 12 season.
