Top 10 Shake-up
Two top-10 teams went down Saturday, as Georgia lost to Missouri at home and Stanford fell from the ranks of the unbeaten at Utah. The Bulldogs, previously No. 7, suffered their second defeat, all but ending their BCS hopes. Georgia dropped to No. 15 in the polls while the still-undefeated Tigers moved up 11 spots to No. 14. The Cardinal, whose comeback bid fell short in the final minute, fell eight spots to No. 13. Newcomers to the Top 10 this week are UCLA at No. 9 and Miami at No. 10, giving the ACC three teams in the Top 10.
Scares and Statements
No. 3 Clemson, which boasts one of the most prolific offenses in the nation, struggled early and often at home against unranked Boston College. The Tigers committed uncharacteristic turnovers and penalties, and were held to just three points in the first half. In the second half, the offense continued to struggle to find a rhythm, but did enough to get the job done. A late fumble recovery for a touchdown sealed a 24-14 win for Clemson, which retained the No. 3 spot with No. 4 Ohio State and No. 5 Florida State both idle.
Entering the weekend at No. 9, Texas A&M survived a shootout at Ole Miss. Johnny Manziel led his team down the field on the game’s final drive, and the Aggies won on a last-second field goal, 41-38. Texas A&M moved up to No. 7 in this week’s poll.
On the flip side, No. 2 Oregon and No. 11 LSU earned statement victories over the weekend. The Ducks ran away from No. 16 Washington in Seattle, 45-21, handing the now-No.20 Huskies their second straight loss. Meanwhile, the Tigers defeated No. 17 Florida, 17-6, and moved up five places to No. 6. The Gators, now 4-2, fell to No. 22.
The Big Picture
There were a lot of changes in this week’s polls, but Alabama and Oregon continued to assert their will on opponents, strengthening their hold on the top two spots. Clemson must learn quickly from Saturday’s debacle against Boston College if it wants to keep its BCS dreams alive—the Tigers face off against No. 5 Florida State next week in what should be the ACC’s game of the year. Stanford will get a crack at redemption next week, as the Cardinal will host No. 9 UCLA.
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