New Top 25 and Hot 12 to be released shortly

Sorry for the delay. Waiting for some voters and I just got Halo 3...so between that and work I haven't done much else all day. Stay tuned.

Ohio State QB in hot water

No, it's not Todd Boeckman having problems with the law, but I have to admit I still chuckled a bit when I read this gem of a story about the Buckeyes' third-string QB, Antonio Henton.

There are hookers in Columbus? I thought they just called them "sorority sisters" there.

Week 5 Pac-10 breakdown

If you're looking for some excitement in college football this weekend, look no further than the Pac-10, which has four -- count 'em, four -- games of interest as we approach Week 5 of the season.

Cal at Oregon
Why it's important: Both teams are looking to start the season 5-0. Most people thought the Bears would roll into this game 4-0, but not many expected the Ducks to be undefeated. The winning team could square off with USC undefeated (Oregon has the easiest path, not to mention fewer games between now and then) and be a legitimate challenger for the Pac-10 title. DeSean Jackson hopes to make those Heisman whispers a little louder.
Important Stat: Cal has given up 24.5 ppg, while Oregon has given up 21.5 ppg. None of their eight combined opponents are currently ranked (Tennessee was ranked when they played Cal). We've seen great triumphs (Cal over Tennessee 45-31, Oregon over Michigan 39-7) and a few low points (Cal escapes from Colorado State, Stanford puts up 28 points on Oregon in the 2nd quarter). The defenses might be suspect, but these high-powered offenses are not. Maybe you've heard of DeSean Jackson and Dennis Dixon.
The Edge: I think Cal comes home 5-0 after a shootout. I think we saw a few kinks in Oregon's armor during the Stanford game. Make no mistake, though -- Cal's not perfect. You saw their last away game.

UCLA at Oregon State
Why it's important: It's a match in Corvallis of two teams struggling to find consistency. By now, you probably heard of these teams stinking up the joint on the road. Both would like some added confidence before embarking upon a gauntlet-like second half of the season.
Important Stat: Oregon State beat Utah 24-7. UCLA got trounced by Utah 44-6. Any questions?
The Edge: Yeah, it's in Corvallis, but UCLA rolls in riding high after regrouping against Ty Willingham and Washington and will return home with a 2-0 record in the conference before taking a non-conference break against Notre Shame.

USC at Washington
Why it's important: I don't know about you, but I can't wait to hear Brent Musburger gush over and over again about the Trojans ... again. But didn't this matchup sound more intriguing back when the Huskies were 2-0? Since then, losses to Ohio State and UCLA have brought the Willingham fans and Weis-haters back to Earth. Will Washington have enough left in the tank to make this game competitive?
Important Stat: Washington lost both of its last two games in the second half. They went into the locker room against Ohio State up 7-3, only to lose 33-14. They went into halftime at the Rose Bowl tied 10-10 with UCLA, then let UCLA score two touchdowns in the third to pull away and eventually win 44-31.
The Edge: Jake Locker is a great player, but the Huskies have taken too many hits for this to go their way. USC rolls out of Seattle with another win, probably with another Husky collapse in the latter half (if it's still close by then).

Arizona State at Stanford
Why it's important: The Sun Devils are back in the Top 25, making it four ranked teams for coach Dennis Erickson in his career. They look to go 5-0 when they play Stanford, which is looking for a win over an opponent more impressive than San Jose State.
Important Stat: Stanford is already 0-2 against ranked conference opponents this year, losing to UCLA and Oregon by a combined 100-48. However, ASU nearly edges out Stanford in yards per game this season, with 466 ypg to Stanford's 460.3 ypg.
The Edge: The Sun Devils will run away from the Cardinal in this one, quite possibly leading up to a 7-0 start before Cal comes calling to Tempe.

Uni Obsession

Another uniform related post (thankfully Tom commented on the disgusting Eagles jersey's already...like I need another reason to hate them). There is a wonderful site out there called Uni Watch. It was started by Paul Lukas, a sports uniform die-hard. He has a weekly column on ESPN.com and also this site. It is quite amazing. If you are nut about sports uniforms - particularly jerseys - the site is definitely worth checking out. Stuff the people comment on and catch during broadcasts is amazing...such as LaDainian Tomlinson is the only NFL player not to wear an American flag on his helmet. Or that Clinton Portis wore white cleats this week. They also are one of the first sites to have pictures of new uniform designs, like when every NHL team debuted the new RBK EDGE jerseys over the course of this summer.

If you are a real freak about sports aesthetics, you can become a member. Like most 'fan clubs' there are various levels you may choose from:

Level One — Wool Flannel ($25): Benefits are as follows:
• Official Uni Watch membership card
• Uni Watch fridge magnet
• Three bonus entries in all Uni Watch raffles
• Your name featured on the Uni Watch “Active Roster” membership listing

Level Two — Vertically Arched ($60): All of the benefits listed above, plus a special members-only Uni Watch T-shirt, this year’s version of which is available in your choice of a blue ringer, red ringer, black ringer, orange on navy, or blue on gray. A new T-shirt design will be made available to new or renewing members each year on May 17th, the anniversary of this blog.

Level Three — Chain-Stitched ($100): All the benefits listed above, plus a CD containing the digital art files for three rare, hard-to-find uniform style guides: NFL 1972, XFL 2001, and MLB’s 1999 “Turn Ahead the Clock” series.

Level Four — Leather Helmet ($250): All the benefits listed above, plus Uni Watch design director Scott M.X. Turner will create a logo for your team, fantasy league, company, civic association, church group, or just for you.

Level Five — Satin Piping ($500): All the benefits listed above, plus I will conduct a “Uni Watch Profiles” interview with you, a transcript of which will be posted on the blog. During the interview we will discuss your favorite uniforms, your uni-related pet peeves, your cap collection, or anything else uni-related that you want to talk about. You will be uni-king for a day!

Level Six — Striped Stirrups ($1000): All of the benefits listed above, plus I will fly to your town (or to the nearest city with an airport) and host a Uni Watch party at the local venue of your choosing. Probably your best chance at attending a Uni Watch party if you live in, say, Wichita. Continental U.S. only. If you live within a 100-mile radius of New York City, I will take you and a guest out to dinner either before or after the party. If you and some friends pool your resources to come up with the fee, you will all receive membership cards.

Level Seven — Silver Medal: Because gold is for suckers. Available only to Uni Watch staff.

Honorary: Reserved for special friends of Uni Watch.

I am indeed a paying member and you can see my membership card below.

There's a reason why they retired those

Since people seem to have an aversion about talking about the Eagles around here (hey, at least I don't berate the Steelers), let's get some Philly talk in here. But it's not all well and good in the City of Brotherly Love. In fact, it's downright ugly.

"AHH! My eyes! I'm blind!"

Yes, the Eagles kicked around the Lions yesterday at the Linc, but they did so wearing these -- throwback uniforms from the teams first season in 1933. Now, I don't want to say they're hideous, but I'm sure these things even made Oregon football players say, "My God, those things are ugly!"

These get-ups caused such a stir that Keith Olbermann went on to declare the person(s) that decided to dress the Eagles in these Dayglo nightmares the "Worst Person(s) in the NFL" this week during halftime of the Cowboys-Bears Sunday Night Football game on NBC. Now, I tend to disagree with Olbermann's politics, but I found it hard not to chuckle a bit watching his halftime segment in which he calls the uniforms "a canary mating with a bluebird".

Photo credit goes to the Philadelphia Eagles official site.

Pennsylvania Sports Roundup: Week 3

Penn State is a terrible offensive team. The Steelers are amazing. The Eagles scored a bunch of points against a bad defense. Pitt got blown out at the Pete by Jim Calhoun and UConn. Yep, that's about it.

Penn State's woes

I don't think I need to remind everyone of the travesty that occurred yesterday in Michigan Stadium, but here are three suggestions that Penn State might want to consider if they want to win the big games, especially those on the road:

1. Teach the kids the basics. How is it that year in and year out our offense literally can't hold onto the ball? Morelli and Scott keep coughing it up at their earliest convenience. This has been the one problem that has been plaguing us for seasons now -- turnovers. Tony Hunt fell victim to this a few times last season too, with a monster fumble early in the game in South Bend. I've never been a football player myself, but I would have to think that you learn how to properly hold the ball fairly early on. Why can't we hold the ball the correct way and protect it, especially on our opponent's 10-yard line?! Rodney Kinlaw better be the starting RB next week vs. the Illini or else things are really screwed up.

2. Make some sort of adjustment in the QB coaching. JayPa got off the hot seat after the 2005 season, but don't you think it's starting to warm up again slightly? I mean, think about it, when was the last time Penn State had a sensational quarterback? Our last few have been "okay" at best. Not even the best quarterback we've had in the new century -- Michael Robinson -- was great. He only succeeded because he was mobile and could do great things with his legs. Morelli seems like Zack Mills, version 2.0. From what I've heard, Matt Seneca wasn't all that good, either. Our lack of success at the QB position could be attributed to some other things, like our woes along the O-line or JoePa's conservative nature. But I still think it comes down to the QB staff, who needs to teach these guys to make smarter decisions even if the O-line is crap.

3. Hide Joe's glasses and flush the playbook. When will we learn that this is no longer 1966 and that offenses have changed since then? Our playcalling is predictable and even if a 5th grader was Michigan's defensive coordinator, he'd be able to stop our running game. I said it before -- and you can look it up -- that Scott and Kinlaw up the middle wouldn't win the game. And it didn't. So when you hide Joe's glasses and bring him to the stadium, just tell him that you handed off to Scott when you really threw a bomb to Deon Butler. And don't answer him when he keeps asking why the crowd's going crazy.

We face a stiff challenge next week against a hungry bunch of Illini. I think our gameplan could still work against them, but I don't know what to think when the Badgers and Buckeyes come calling.

Week 4 College Football Synopsis

Here we go again. A bunch of shake-ups happening in the middle-lower end of the pack this week. Doesn't really matter though as the top 10 stayed the same...minus that team that was at #10.

Anyway, I'll get the boring stuff out of the way first and talk about the ACC. Cupcakes Duke and UNC lost to Navy and USF, respectively. Duke could have had their 2nd win of the year if they didn't choke their game away. BC beat another military academy and WF needed OT to put down the Terps. Miami restored just a little bit of cred to the ACC in beating the ranked Aggies of TAMU.

With that, we'll transition into TAMU's conference, the Big 12. OK weekend I suppose. OU, Kansas, Texas, Colorado, and Mizzou beat the crap out of their opponents. Nebraska barely edged out Ball State somehow though Ball State likes the spoiler roll...remember when they almost beat UM last year? Iowa State, where do I begin. The usual losing to terrible teams continued this week as they fell to a previously winless team from Toledo by fumbling the ball late in their own endzone. I think it's safe to say Iowa State only cares when they're playing the Hawkeyes.

Big East was pretty quiet this weekend. We learned that Louisiville might as well put a Pee-Wee team 's defense out on the field. They'd do just as good, if not better, than what they have right now. UConn went out to Pittsburgh and embarrassed the Panthers on their home turf. Same old, same old with Cincy, USF and WVU rolling as RU had the weekend off.

Pac-10 yielded no surprises as well. The teams that were supposed to win did as USC, UCLA, ASU, OU and Cal all winning with limited difficulty. Unfortunately, nothing really to make fun of there.

Same can pretty much be said about the SEC. Florida did have some trouble but finally won a game in Mississippi by edging out Ole Miss. South Carolina gave LSU a fight, but not enough of one as LSU won one in Death Valley. Kentucky proved that they're legit by sticking it to the Hogs at Arkansas, outscoring them 28-9 in the second half. Georgia pulled off a semi-upset by defeating the higher ranked Tide in Tuscaloosa. It took overtime but at least the Bulldogs knocked Saban off his pedestal.

And last but probably not least (at least with the ACC around), the Big Ten. OSU beat the living daylights out of Northwestern...then again NW did lose to Duke last week. Illinois is looking pretty good after defeating the Hoosiers in Bloomington by a couple scores. Notre Dame continued their futility by falling at home to Michigan State while Purdue handled Minnesota with ease. Wisconsin was lucky to squeeze by Iowa, continuing to prove that they're probably overrated quite a bit. And now, the game that I don't even want to talk about...PSU v. UM. I'd have to say, that was more PSU losing than Michigan winning. PSU looked like garbage. Play calling was garbage, red zone offense was garbage, Morelli was garbage, Austin Scott was garbage, etc. etc. Regardless, Michigan has a quality football team. Or at least they have a quality running back in Mike Hart. They can probably just ride him to victory in most of their games this year. He's that good.

Anyway, enough rambling about PSU frustrations. You get that enough on this site. Until someone in the top 5-6 loses this year, things will be relatively quiet. Don't be surprised to see that happen soon as conference play starts to get in full swing.

MICH-PSU Recap

Michigan basically owns Penn State. I know Lions fans (including most of the other writers on this blog) are going to hate hearing that, but after winning 9 straight, I think we just may have earned the right to make that claim.

After this game, everyone’s left to answer whether Penn State was just overrated to begin with or if Michigan has turned it around with a much improved defense. I personally think it’s a little bit of both.

Game Analysis:
Offense:
Mike Hart was solid with 44 carries, cementing Lloyd Carr’s traditional philosophy of managing the clock well (Michigan’s TOP was 34:52). Hart’s on pace to break the 2000 yard mark this season. The offensive zone blocking scheme seemed to work quite well against Penn State's defensive line. Ryan Mallett also managed the game well. I was very impressed with the poise that he showed on 3rd down situations when Penn State brought the blitz. We’re not very used to seeing that composure from Chad Henne. Also, Mallett showed once again that he’s got nasty zip on his passes. If he works on his accuracy and decision-making, he’s going to be fun to watch in the post-Henne era at Michigan. Manningham and Arrington both contributed well on the receiving end with a combined 12 receptions for 131 yards.

Defense:
Defensively, the pass rush was excellent. Credit here goes to Brandon Graham and Tim Jamison. Like last year, Morelli couldn’t seem to handle pressure from the linebackers. Freshman Donovan Warren did a very good job of shutting down Derrick Williams for the most part. Overall, the defensive performances from the past two games close the door on those awful showings against Appy State and Oregon.

The Big Picture:
We beat a good Penn State team today. Two weeks ago, the sky seemed to be falling in Ann Arbor; but now, Wolverine faithful are finally getting a taste of what was expected of their team in the preseason. This win should hopefully silence some critics and restore some credibility to Michigan. The schedule ahead looks really favorable until we play Wisconsin and Ohio State to end the season. I think we’ll be in good position to compete for the Big Ten Championship and play in Pasadena again in January.

Unfortunately, I was right...

A few days ago, I said this little quip on the PSU-UM game:

-It pains me to pick this but I don't think Morelli will be able to cut it and I think Hart could just have a field day against our D-Line. Regardless, it should be very close.

Well, Morelli didn't cut it. No picks, thank God, but there was a costly fumble and a completion % under 50%. Half the time he looked lost out there but from what I could see, some of that had to do with a shaky O-Line and receivers not running crisp routes. Regardless, he did make some stupid throws.

Hart did have a field day. Just when you thought he was gonna get stopped by the line, he kept going...and going...and going. He's the main reason Michigan won this one.

It was close, lucky for PSU. The D kept them in this one. I felt bad for them because the O didn't help them out at all. Michigan had the ball for 10 more minutes than PSU and that's just unacceptable.

Either way, I have no idea what happened to UM in the first two games but they're not that bad of a football team. They have just as good a shot as anyone in the Big Ten this year and I'm just glad PSU got their toughest road game off the schedule already.

Also, if Austin Scott starts one more game for the Blue and White......

Penn State-Michigan 2nd Half Observations

This team is dead. Penn State is going to self-destruct after this. The team showed absolutely no heart on offense what-so-ever. On the final offensive series, the first 2 plays Morelli was rushed. Where was the damn blocking? This loss feels worse than the loss on the last play in 2005. Did I actually expect PSU to play for the National Championship? No. Did expect them to win the Big Ten even? No (I predicted Michigan like everyone else, followed by Wisconsin, then Penn State). But what I did expect was a team that would fight; show some passion and heart. They didn't leave anything on the field today. Yeah, the D looked dominating at times but Mike hart had over 40 carries and racked up over 13o yards. And this may demonstrate the performance best: Michigan was 10-18 on 3rd down and Penn State couldn't stop their passes when they needed it the most.

No running game. An immobile QB that makes dumb decisions. An offensive line that is filled with 3rd stringers. Penn State is done.


On a separate note, how pitiful was ABCs coverage today? The camera views and the returns to the action were atrocious. We, as TV viewers, missed at least 2 plays because they didn't come back to the game in time. Paul Maguire is a terrible commentator (nice blue and maize tie, Paul). He says things that are completely irrelevant to the action and immediately decides what happened on a play before even viewing replays. He said that Norwood's fumble on Penn State's 3rd series was a fumble before a replay was ever shown (it wasn't a fumble). He did the same on Austin Scott's fumble in the 3rd (it was called a fumble). Bob Griese was a decent commentator but he stutters a lot. Really terrible coverage all around. It was a terrible game to watch for more than one reason.

Prediction after today's pathetic play: Penn State loses at least 2 more games. This team is doomed. PATHETIC.

Penn State-Michigan 1st Half Observations

Penn State is not a Top 10 team. Maybe 15th, probably closer to 20th. When you have an ABYSMAL offense (no line, no QB, no RBs) you aren't going to win anything. The only reason PSU enters the half down only 4 (7-3, Michigan) is because the defense has been playing decent. Not great. Luckily the Michigan offense can only feed Mike Hart and everyone know who is getting the ball. But even the defense has looked shaky. For every stop for no gain or loss there has been a run or pass for 8+ yards. I realize the defense has only given up 7 points (and it was because UM started at the 10 due to Morelli's fumble) but they need to step it up - just like the offense - if PSU is going to come back and win. Connor is the only person making plays.

Maybe I'm being a little too harsh. But they are losing. To Michigan. A team that lost to a D-1AA team and got crushed by Oregon. I realize it's at 'The Big House'. BUT COME ON! Look alive! Wake up. Please.

Notre Dame's season gets a little more embarassing

By now, I'm sure you've all heard of former starting ND quarterback Demetrius Jones' decision to transfer from the school. His reasoning seemed legit: Weis duped him into thinking he was his guy. Heck, I would too if I started the opener and my head coach said the team would be stupid if they didn't know who the team's starting QB during the off-season. However, right now, the team is refusing to let him transfer to his school of choice, Northern Illinois University. Notre Dame is holding him hostage because (if I understand this correctly), they can refuse to release him from their scholarship, preventing him from obtaining one at another school. In a nutshell, the Irish can decide where he goes. They're saying that they will 'assist' him in finding another school and will not let him go somewhere that is going to play the Irish in the near future. That's what really gets me.

Wow Notre Dame...you're sooooo scared of Demetrius Jones that you bench him and refuse to let him play you in the future. That's really low. You basically turn your back on this guy and then try to control where he goes to school. If you're that paranoid, then why'd you bench him in the first place?! The sheer irony in all of this is that I can't find Northern Illinois anywhere on future ND schedules. This kid just wants to go home. He's from Chicago, roughly an hour drive from the NIU campus.

Charlie Weis' ego is bigger than his waistline. There is no reason to refuse Jones' request to transfer, especially with Clausen seemingly entrenched at QB for the next 4 years. Notre Dame should do the right thing and just let him go home. C'mon, they're good Catholics up at South Bend, right? I guess they just can't play any football or use common sense.

Read the story on ESPN about this by clicking on the blog title above

Lou Holtz cont.

Wow, I so wish I saw that clip. I think I'm going to watch ESPNU and all other ESPN affiliates until I catch that.

$100 Holtz used that line when he coached the Jets. $500 that's the reason he didn't last for more than a season.

Lou Holtz is the Greatest Motivational Speaker of All Time

During half time of the Miami-TAMU game, ESPN gave Lou Holtz air time to provide a motivational speech for Penn State before they play in Ann Arbor on Saturday. To close his spirited and moving sermon, he said the following:

"Those Michigan guys are an arrogant bunch. They probably do crossword puzzles with pens because they think that they'll never make a mistake. They'll realize that scheduling us was a huge mistake."

Yes Lou, it's unfortunate, but we are just that arrogant. I can't tell you how much we look up to Notre Dame to understand what modesty is all about.

Quarterback Debate

Ever wondering who is the greatest quarterback of all-time? Unitas? Montana? Elway? Tarkenton? Marino? Young? Manning? Brady? Well an impressive article was written on ArmchairGM by user Davis21wylie. Using a QB formula, he calculated the Top 100 QBs of all-time. It is a lengthy article but a must read for NFL fans. Check it out here: The 100 Greatest Quarterbacks of the Modern Era, Version 1.0

Deja Vu?

Hey everyone. Just wanted to post this again. You can join this great sports community site called ArmchairGM. Just click "Deja Vu" above or here. You can publish your own opinions, read others, vote on various athletes, events, stadiums, etc., and participate in user games such as pick 'ems and predictions. It is a fun and entertaining site so I urge you to check it out (this means you, Tom).

ABC's Saturday Night Mediocrity/Upset Alert

In the past few weeks, Brent Musburger, Kirk Herbstreit, and ABC have brought you some pretty good primetime matchups from the college football world. Tennessee at Cal, Virginia Tech at LSU, USC at Nebraska.

Now everyone hold your breath when I say that ABC is splitting Saturday Night Football between Washington State at USC and Iowa at Wisconsin. Cue disappointment.

I mean, these aren't horrible matchups. Speaking of horrible, just think of the intrigue of Saturday's primetime game in two weeks -- Notre Dame at UCLA. Think the bigwigs at ABC are regretting that hasty preseason commitment?

If USC was on the road again, I'd maybe understand. But c'mon, this is being played in SoCal, and Washington State is just okay. They did keep competitive with Wisconsin for the first half. Then again, so did The Citadel. But they haven't been tested since. USC manhandled Nebraska, and I expect this one to have a similar outcome. Plus, am I the only one sick of seeing USC in the marquee games? Looks like Washington at USC is another 8:00pm ET kickoff next week. I don't think I can handle three weeks in a row of Brent Musburger getting off to the Trojans. (If Musburger will be in SoCal next week, I expect ABC will put him in Madison this week. I hope.)

Iowa-Wisconsin lost a ton of luster when Iowa fell flat against a pretty crappy 0-2 Iowa State squad. The Cyclones didn't even need to score a touchdown to beat Kirk Ferentz's crew. Not that the matchup had a whole lot of luster in the first place. Wisconsin allowed Wazzu and The Citadel to play a 21-21 game up until halftime. They struggled to put away UNLV until the final minutes on the road. The foundation of both teams is shaky, at best. This is where I tend to disagree with EEW, here. I think Wisconsin unsurprisingly allows the Hawkeyes to keep it competitive for the first 30 minutes before pulling away in the second half. This is a primetime matchup in Madison, after all.

Quick upset alert, and I need to write it today since they're playing in the Orange Bowl tonight. Watch out, Texas A&M. I know the Miami Hurricanes haven't looked overly impressive in the first three weeks of the season, but neither have the Aggies. Don't think for a minute that Randy Shannon won't have this team pumped and ready for this one. This would be a statement win for Miami, and while it may not be one for A&M, it might be a win that proves they deserve their ranking.

This week in the SEC

EEW briefly touched on these with his picks, but let's talk some SEC.

South Carolina at LSU
Why it's important: A Steve Spurrier win in Death Valley would solidify the Gamecock renaissance that the Ol' Ball Coach has been talking up since he landed at South Carolina -- not to mention Lee Corso would be eating a big, steaming bowl of crow. But let's not get ahead of ourselves here. They're still playing the #2 ranked team in the country on the road, and without their marching band! (Apparently travel expenses are too high.)
Important Stat: In total, LSU's defense has allowed 7 points to be scored in three games against very decent teams -- Mississippi State, Virginia Tech, and Middle Tennessee. LSU's offense has been stepping all over opposing defenses. The Gamecock defense is no joke, though. Remember that they held Matthew Stafford and company to 12 points at Georgia.
The Edge: Clearly, it's LSU. Matt Flynn and the high-powered LSU offense might not steamroll over the Gamecocks, but their out-of-this-world defense will ensure that the Tigers retain a comfortable lead throughout.

Georgia at Alabama
Why it's important: Alabama makes a huge jump into the ratings following a nearly disastrous 3-point victory over Arkansas ... because they're Alabama. Nick Saban can silence the last of the naysayers by going 5-0 and defeating his second consecutive ranked conference opponent. The jury's out on Matthew Stafford and the Bulldogs. They came in with great expectations this year, only to be thwarted at home by South Carolina. They may be looking to prove they can still play ball.
Important Stat: 31-10. That's the score Alabama led over Arkansas before watching it slip through their hands like sand by the fourth quarter. The Razorbacks scored 28 unanswered to make it 38-31, but Nick Saban's squad scored 10 more in the last eight minutes -- including a touchdown with eight seconds left -- to notch the victory.
The Edge: This could go either way, really. Alabama's finishing ability is questionable, but the Georgia offense hasn't been impressive against a decent opponent yet. The advantage goes to the Tide, since this game's in Tuscaloosa.

Kentucky at Arkansas
Why it's important: Kentucky's back in the top 25 after everyone and their brother knew they'd rip up the Louisville D. Now it's onto conference play, where they must travel to the Nutt House and find a way to stop Heisman hopeful Darren McFadden in his tracks. Their D really, really needs to step it up if they want to be competitive in this game.
Important Stat: Darren McFadden rushed for 195 yards in the loss against Alabama this week. Need I say more?
The Edge: Arkansas gets this game at home, where they'll be anxious to jump back into the poll. Darren McFadden is probably a little bit too quick for the Kentucky D, and is sure to have another Heisman resume padding day. Look for Arkansas to win this one.

Week 4 College Football Outlook

Lou Holtz and Mark May seem to have tons of fun predicting games, so I figure I'll give it a shot. Winners in bold.

#12 South Carolina @ #2 LSU
-LSU is just too good for the Gamecocks

#10 Penn State @ Michigan
-It pains me to pick this but I don't think Morelli will be able to cut it and I think Hart could just have a field day against our D-Line. Regardless, it should be very close.

#22 Georgia @ #16 Alabama
-Despite choking away a 21 point lead, Alabama got propelled from unranked to #16. Georgia brings them back to Earth, winning by a TD.

Michigan State @ Notre Dame
-Until Notre Dame shows me anything, I'd pick Appalachian State over them.

#21 Kentucky @ Arkansas
-Kentucky is good but they just fully exposed a porous Louisville D last Saturday. McFadden carries the Hogs to victory.

Illinois @ Indiana
-Indiana has shown fewer flaws so far and plays at home, giving them the edge.

Purdue @ Minnesota
-And this is a nationally televised prime-time game because...?

Northwestern @ #8 Ohio State
-Northwestern lost to Duke last week...at home. What more do you need to know?

North Carolina @ #23 USF
-It will be intriguing to see if USF lets the ranking get to their head but I think they just have too much talent to lose to this ACC cupcake.

Iowa @ #9 Wisconsin
-Ok, so this is basically a hunch but keep in mind that despite the fact Iowa lost to pitiful Iowa State last week, they're still the only team not to give up a TD in all of I-A.

Washington @ UCLA
-I'd give UCLA the edge, mainly because they have the most to be afraid of if they lose again after falling to Utah 44-6.

Washington State @ #1 USC
-ABC has either this or Iowa v. Wisconsin to choose from. Here's to hoping its the Big Ten matchup.