Ben van Ooyen
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A Non-Voters Top 10 – Week 5
Ben van Ooyen via our good friends at Buckeye Battle Cry
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Welcome to a new weekly feature on The Buckeye Battle Cry, my “doesn’t count for anything” top 10 poll. Each week after digesting the college football games that were I will come here and put together my top 10 teams in the nation. After week 5, let’s see how I think things stand.
1.) Ohio State – 4-0 – Next Week @ Indiana
The Buckeyes move to #1 in my latest poll, not only because they are my team, but because they have done the most on the field so far this season. The Buckeyes rank #1 in the nation in scoring offense, total offense, scoring defense, total defense, defensive touchdowns and red zone defense among other stats. The team is firing on all cylinders right now and they look to keep the momentum rolling as they travel to Bloomington this weekend to take on the Hoosiers.
2.) Alabama – 5-0 – Next Week @ Arkansas
The Crimson Tide didn’t do anything to deserve a drop in the rankings as much as Ohio State did to jump them. The Tide rolled last week against Kentucky 34-6 behind another strong performance by true freshman Jalen Hurts. The Tide travel to Arkansas this weekend in what will be one of the marquee games to watch. Arkansas is ranked 16th in the AP Poll and comes in at 4-1 with their lone loss to top 10 team Texas A&M. This will be a challenging game for Saban and company, can they continue the path towards the College Football Playoff?
3.) Clemson – 5-0 – Next Week @ Boston College
No doubt the biggest win over the weekend belongs to the Tigers who outlasted Louisville 42-36 in Death Valley. Deshaun Watson showed why he is a Heisman Trophy candidate and although the defenses didn’t really show up much at the end, this game was an instant classic. The Tigers have an easy week this weekend as they travel to Boston College to take on the Eagles who haven’t won an ACC game in nearly two years. This should be a statistic padding game for Watson, and the Tigers should have their starters out by the middle of the 3rd quarter.
4.) Washington – 5-0 – Next Week @ Oregon
I don’t think anyone outside of Washington expected to see what happened on Friday night against Stanford. The Huskies dominated every facet of the game, and shut down the always dangerous Christian McCaffrey to only 79 yards. Jake Browning is going to get some Heisman consideration if he continues to play at the level he is with 17 TD’s and only 2 INT’s on the season with a 71% completion percentage. The Huskies travel to the always dangerous Eugene to play the Ducks this weekend. Oregon is having a tough go of it this year, but with their skill you can never really discount them.
5.) Michigan – 5-0 – Next Week @ Rutgers
Yeah… I am still not impressed with Michigan. They played a decent Wisconsin team and pulled out the win at home. The Wolverines have not had to travel so far this season, and that will change this weekend as they go to New Jersey to play Rutgers. I fully expect the Wolverines to be undefeated going into their match-up with Michigan State on October 29th, and realistically they should be undefeated when they travel to Columbus for The Game in November.
6.) Houston – 5-0 – Next Week @ Navy
Houston beat up UConn last week to exact revenge on last years lone loss to the Huskies. Greg Ward Jr. accounted for five touchdowns to lead the Cougs to a 42-14 thumping. Houston shouldn’t really be tested until they play Louisville in Novemeber, but don’t discount the Navy Midshipmen who they play this week. Navy’s option can give teams fits, and as an Ohio State fan I am fully aware of how frustrating it can be to play this type of team. Unless something major happens, expect Houston and Louisville to play for a potential playoff birth later this year.
7.) Texas A&M – 5-0 – Next Week vs Tennessee
The Aggies are my surprise team of the week. They have four quality wins against UCLA, Auburn, Arkansas and South Carolina already this season. They are led by former Oklahoma quarterback Trevor Knight who doesn’t have all-world numbers, but he is getting the job done. Their offense is loaded with skill players like Christian Kirk and Trayveon Williams along with Josh Reynolds. Hopefully A&M doesn’t get out to a 21 point lead on the Volunteers this weekend, or we know what the outcome of that game will be.
8.) Louisville – 4-1 – Next Week Idle
Yeah, Louisville lost to Clemson. However, they played some great football and came up just short of pulling off the win in Death Valley. Lamar Jackson looked a little human in the first half, but then came alive in the second showcasing why he is still the front runner for the Heisman after five weeks. He threw for nearly 300 yards and ran for another 162 and three total touchdowns (bringing his season total to 28). Louisville has a pretty easy schedule until their potential top ten match-up with Houston in November.
9.) Nebraska – 5-0 – Next Week Idle
It hasn’t been pretty every week for the Huskers, but they have managed to get the job done every week so far. Their win against Oregon isn’t looking as good since the Ducks have decided to fall apart, but they are still undefeated and should remain so until they play Wisconsin and Ohio State in back to back games in late October-early November. Senior Tommy Armstrong is completing passes this year at a better percentage than any of his other seasons so far, and he has accounted for 14 total touchdowns for the Huskers. They are off this week, but travel to Bloomington in two weeks.
10.) Miami – 4-0 – Next Week vs Florida State
Mark Richt has to be happy with how things are going in South Florida right about now doesn’t he? With Georgia not having a great season so far, and the Hurricanes off to a 4-0 start under junior Brad Kaaya, things are moving in the right direction for Richt and the Canes. While they haven’t played anyone of note so far, they will be tested this week against a pretty down Florida State team coming off a last second loss to North Carolina. If the ‘Canes can navigate themselves through October unscathed then they will be sitting pretty for a shot at the ACC Championship and a birth in the Playoff.
The post A Non-Voters Top 10 – Week 5 appeared first on The Buckeye Battle Cry: Ohio State News and Commentary.
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Ben van Ooyen via our good friends at Buckeye Battle Cry
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Welcome to a new weekly feature on The Buckeye Battle Cry, my “doesn’t count for anything” top 10 poll. Each week after digesting the college football games that were I will come here and put together my top 10 teams in the nation. After week 5, let’s see how I think things stand.
1.) Ohio State – 4-0 – Next Week @ Indiana
The Buckeyes move to #1 in my latest poll, not only because they are my team, but because they have done the most on the field so far this season. The Buckeyes rank #1 in the nation in scoring offense, total offense, scoring defense, total defense, defensive touchdowns and red zone defense among other stats. The team is firing on all cylinders right now and they look to keep the momentum rolling as they travel to Bloomington this weekend to take on the Hoosiers.
2.) Alabama – 5-0 – Next Week @ Arkansas
The Crimson Tide didn’t do anything to deserve a drop in the rankings as much as Ohio State did to jump them. The Tide rolled last week against Kentucky 34-6 behind another strong performance by true freshman Jalen Hurts. The Tide travel to Arkansas this weekend in what will be one of the marquee games to watch. Arkansas is ranked 16th in the AP Poll and comes in at 4-1 with their lone loss to top 10 team Texas A&M. This will be a challenging game for Saban and company, can they continue the path towards the College Football Playoff?
3.) Clemson – 5-0 – Next Week @ Boston College
No doubt the biggest win over the weekend belongs to the Tigers who outlasted Louisville 42-36 in Death Valley. Deshaun Watson showed why he is a Heisman Trophy candidate and although the defenses didn’t really show up much at the end, this game was an instant classic. The Tigers have an easy week this weekend as they travel to Boston College to take on the Eagles who haven’t won an ACC game in nearly two years. This should be a statistic padding game for Watson, and the Tigers should have their starters out by the middle of the 3rd quarter.
4.) Washington – 5-0 – Next Week @ Oregon
I don’t think anyone outside of Washington expected to see what happened on Friday night against Stanford. The Huskies dominated every facet of the game, and shut down the always dangerous Christian McCaffrey to only 79 yards. Jake Browning is going to get some Heisman consideration if he continues to play at the level he is with 17 TD’s and only 2 INT’s on the season with a 71% completion percentage. The Huskies travel to the always dangerous Eugene to play the Ducks this weekend. Oregon is having a tough go of it this year, but with their skill you can never really discount them.
5.) Michigan – 5-0 – Next Week @ Rutgers
Yeah… I am still not impressed with Michigan. They played a decent Wisconsin team and pulled out the win at home. The Wolverines have not had to travel so far this season, and that will change this weekend as they go to New Jersey to play Rutgers. I fully expect the Wolverines to be undefeated going into their match-up with Michigan State on October 29th, and realistically they should be undefeated when they travel to Columbus for The Game in November.
6.) Houston – 5-0 – Next Week @ Navy
Houston beat up UConn last week to exact revenge on last years lone loss to the Huskies. Greg Ward Jr. accounted for five touchdowns to lead the Cougs to a 42-14 thumping. Houston shouldn’t really be tested until they play Louisville in Novemeber, but don’t discount the Navy Midshipmen who they play this week. Navy’s option can give teams fits, and as an Ohio State fan I am fully aware of how frustrating it can be to play this type of team. Unless something major happens, expect Houston and Louisville to play for a potential playoff birth later this year.
7.) Texas A&M – 5-0 – Next Week vs Tennessee
The Aggies are my surprise team of the week. They have four quality wins against UCLA, Auburn, Arkansas and South Carolina already this season. They are led by former Oklahoma quarterback Trevor Knight who doesn’t have all-world numbers, but he is getting the job done. Their offense is loaded with skill players like Christian Kirk and Trayveon Williams along with Josh Reynolds. Hopefully A&M doesn’t get out to a 21 point lead on the Volunteers this weekend, or we know what the outcome of that game will be.
8.) Louisville – 4-1 – Next Week Idle
Yeah, Louisville lost to Clemson. However, they played some great football and came up just short of pulling off the win in Death Valley. Lamar Jackson looked a little human in the first half, but then came alive in the second showcasing why he is still the front runner for the Heisman after five weeks. He threw for nearly 300 yards and ran for another 162 and three total touchdowns (bringing his season total to 28). Louisville has a pretty easy schedule until their potential top ten match-up with Houston in November.
9.) Nebraska – 5-0 – Next Week Idle
It hasn’t been pretty every week for the Huskers, but they have managed to get the job done every week so far. Their win against Oregon isn’t looking as good since the Ducks have decided to fall apart, but they are still undefeated and should remain so until they play Wisconsin and Ohio State in back to back games in late October-early November. Senior Tommy Armstrong is completing passes this year at a better percentage than any of his other seasons so far, and he has accounted for 14 total touchdowns for the Huskers. They are off this week, but travel to Bloomington in two weeks.
10.) Miami – 4-0 – Next Week vs Florida State
Mark Richt has to be happy with how things are going in South Florida right about now doesn’t he? With Georgia not having a great season so far, and the Hurricanes off to a 4-0 start under junior Brad Kaaya, things are moving in the right direction for Richt and the Canes. While they haven’t played anyone of note so far, they will be tested this week against a pretty down Florida State team coming off a last second loss to North Carolina. If the ‘Canes can navigate themselves through October unscathed then they will be sitting pretty for a shot at the ACC Championship and a birth in the Playoff.
The post A Non-Voters Top 10 – Week 5 appeared first on The Buckeye Battle Cry: Ohio State News and Commentary.
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