THE WORLD OF BAX: MARCH OF THE UNBEATENS

This is truly a defining weekend for the dwindling number of unbeaten teams remaining in the country. In fact, I would argue that this weekend’s slate of games could turn out to be the biggest and most influential of the entire season! Almost every unbeaten team in the country has a significant hurdle in their way and I would not be surprised whatsoever if the number of unbeaten teams is halved by midnight on Saturday. Look at their matchups!

- Cincinnati travels to South Florida in a rare mid-October battle of unbeaten teams. Obviously, this game is going to eliminate one team from the ranks of the undefeated.

- Texas plays Oklahoma in the Red River Shootout. In the past ten years, the series is split 6-4, making it one of the most even rivalries in the country. Would anyone truly be surprised if Oklahoma won this game?

- Florida faces off at home against Arkansas. The Gators are coming off of an emotional victory at LSU and appear to have few hurdles in their way of an unbeaten regular season. Meanwhile, Arkansas just ended Auburn’s unbeaten season last week with a 44-23 beatdown and has the ability to score enough points to make this a game. Florida is on upset alert this week.

- Iowa travels to rival Wisconsin. Badger head coach Brett Bielema is an Iowa alumnus and his team is 5-1. You think he doesn’t want to knock off his alma mater and get his team back in the Big Ten race? This is a scary game for the Hawkeyes.

-TCU battles Colorado State. While the Rams are a decent mid-major, the big concern here is that this could be a trap game for Gary Patterson’s Horned Frogs as a major showdown with BYU looms next week. I wouldn’t be shocked whatsoever if Colorado State pulled off the upset.

- Alabama hosts 5-1 South Carolina. While the Tide has been the best team in the country thus far, there is a very real chance for the Gamecocks to leave Bryant-Denny Stadium with a victory thanks to their hard-hitting defense. Remember, South Carolina has already beaten one top ten team this season……

The only unbeaten team in Division One Football that I think is safe from any major upset concerns is Kansas, who plays at 1-4 Colorado. Then again, as terrible as Colorado has been, Kansas barely beat lowly Iowa State last week. This all combines to mean that there could be an enormous shift in the polls next week because the unbeatens are all on upset alert.

WHO SAID BOISE STATE SHOULD PLAY FOR THE BCS CHAMPIONSHIP: Part 2

When I wrote last week that Boise State was a fraud who didn’t deserve a sniff at the Top Ten, much less then National Title Game, the vast majority of feedback from you, my growing number of readers, agreed completely. The average fan seems to think that Boise State is a nice story, kind of like a #9 seed making it to the Sweet 16 in the NCAA Tournament. In fact, most people argued that the Broncos are a great example of why there should be a playoff: So that Boise State can actually line up opposite an elite opponent and get run over, ending the discussion of their fictional elite status. Yet, with such an overwhelming response against them amongst fans, why are the Broncos somehow in the top 10? I’ve finally figured it out: Boise State is a media creation.

Here’s how I came to this epiphany: I was reading a chat with ESPN’s Graham Watson, who runs one of their normally excellent college football blogs, and she was asked why Boise State was ranked 5 th when they played in a conference that featured a combined 13-23 record thus far outside of the Broncos. Her response:

“ Boise State started high because of what it's done in the past. It's earned that spot because of consistent performance. Just like USC earns a top spot every year. A lot of it has to do with respect. And it's up to Boise State to hold that spot and the Broncos have. They've done nothing to warrant a slip in the polls. So you can argue fair or not fair forever, the fact is that over time Boise State has warranted respect from the voters.”

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Boise State started high because of what they’ve done in the past? Boise State has warranted respect from voters? Graham, the Broncos are 4-4 against BCS conference opponents in the last five and a half regular seasons and have repeatedly flopped in bowl games, boasting a 1-4 record in their last five! It’s also extremely rich of you to compare Boise State to USC, who not only dominates their conference (a significantly better one than the WAC, by the way) but also consistently dominates elite out of conference opponents. Boise State’s only consistency is killing patsies and then appearing more than mortal against real teams. I’m still looking for a reason to grant this ‘respect’ you’re talking about.

But the one thing that the Talented Ms. Watson is going to have to re-evaluate is her assertion that Boise State has done nothing to slip in the polls following Boise State’s 28-21 escape at Tulsa last night. Now, Tulsa is a nice team: They usually finish towards the top of Conference USA and would challenge Boise State every year in the WAC. In fact, I think Tulsa’s a great comparison for Boise State because they’re both successful mid-major programs that have the ability to beat a BCS conference team every so often. However, it is extremely likely that this will go down as Boise State’s 2 nd toughest challenge of the season and that’s unacceptable for a purported top ten team.

The big difference between the teams is twofold: Tulsa plays in a conference with a few other teams that are roughly on both teams’ levels, like Houston, East Carolina and Southern Mississippi, preventing them from running up 8-0 conference records every year. Also, Tulsa is recognized as one of the best non-BCS teams but is also rightly recognized as a team that is not among the national elite.

Look, Tulsa has put together a very impressive 25-7 record in the last two and a half years but they’re 0-3 against BCS conference opponents. Much like Boise State, Tulsa has been a dominant team when they don’t have to play the big boys but their dominant veneer has been stripped away pretty quickly when they have to line up across from the real elite.

I would go so far as to say that if you put Boise State in C-USA and Tulsa in the WAC, Tulsa would quickly put together a long string of conference wins, just like Boise State. The only true differences between these two are the caliber of their conferences and the way they’re perceived by the national media.

Furthermore, if Boise State is truly a deserving top five team, they should have beat Tulsa by far more than a single touchdown. Case in point: Two loss Oklahoma thumped Tulsa less than a month ago by the score of 45-0! I don’t normally like to play the comparison game but when you see such a major disparity then it is simply impossible to overlook: Boise State doesn’t deserve to sniff at a BCS bowl bid.

Anyways, let’s move ahead to the aforementioned huge weekend of college football! Last week was one of my best weeks all season as I finished with a solid 8-3 record. This significantly better showing brings me to 38-26 overall and I’m looking to string together back to back great weeks for the first time all season. Here goes nothing…

#12 Cincinnati at #23 South Florida

Thursday, 7:30 PM EST

Pretty much everything is on the line in this one: The winner maintains an undefeated season while jumping directly to the top of the Big East race. Cincinnati is the favorite thanks to their high-powered offense and better than expected defense. However, South Florida has a strong defense which has allowed less than ten points per game thus far. In the end, both of these teams are very evenly matched up and I expect a very close game. However, Thursday night is where ranked teams on the road go to die, so I’m picking USF to defend their home field and improve to 6-0.

UPSET ALERT: South Florida 26, Cincinnati 24

Pittsburgh at Rutgers

Friday, 8:00 PM EST

Continuing the Big East weeknight flavor, Pitt travels to Rutgers and invades the Friday night sanctuary of high school football. Pitt hasn’t beaten Rutgers in the past five seasons, their longest current losing streak against a conference rival. Rutgers also has defended the run well, meaning that it will be strength vs. strength when the Panthers’ offense takes the field. However, Pitt is a deeper team and if QB Bill Stull protects the ball then Pitt should win this one going away. Unfortunately, Stull’s inconsistent play has held the Panthers back but I think that Pitt is going to come into this game motivated to end their losing skid.

Pittsburgh 27, Rutgers 20

#21 Oklahoma vs. #9 Texas

Saturday, Noon EST

While the stakes haven’t lived up to preseason expectations thanks to Oklahoma’s early losses, the Red River Shootout is still one of the premier rivalry games in the country. For Oklahoma, the timing couldn’t be any better. Sam Bradford is back healthy, the team is rounding into form and Texas appears vulnerable after a poor showing against Colorado and a couple of injuries in their backfield. Oklahoma can redeem their entire season with a victory in Dallas and I think they get it on the strength of their defense.

UPSET ALERT: Oklahoma 31, Texas 24

#3 Iowa at #20 Wisconsin

Saturday, Noon EST

Expect a classic Big Ten football game at Camp Randall Stadium. Iowa has won two of the last three games on Wisconsin’s home turf and will be looking to continue their hot start. Expect both teams to run the football a lot in this one but don’t expect a lot of scoring. In the end, the biggest deciding factor in this showdown will be Iowa’s stout defensive line and I expect the Hawkeyes to win a hard-fought low-scoring affair.

Iowa 20, Wisconsin 10

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Texas Tech at #13 Nebraska

Saturday, 3:30 PM EST

This will be a very interesting test for the Huskers’ defense. After shutting down Missouri’s aerial attack last week, the Huskers are now faced with the prospect of slowing down high-flying Texas Tech on home turf. If Nebraska’s defense is truly back, they’ll keep the Red Raiders in check this weekend and after seeing their performance against Mizzou, I’m a believer.

Nebraska 38, Texas Tech 27

Arkansas at #4 Florida

Saturday, 3:30 PM EST

This is such a dangerous game for Florida. They’re coming off of an emotional road win against a highly touted opponent and now they have to face an up and coming Arkansas team who blew out previously unbeaten Auburn last week. A little known fact: Florida has lost to an SEC West opponent in each of the past ten seasons! Arkansas is going to move the ball against the Gators but the real question is whether the Razorbacks can slow down Tim Tebow and company enough to make this a close affair. I expect this game to go down to the wire but I don’t have the guts to pick Arkansas. Florida stays unbeaten in a squeaker.

Florida 34, Arkansas 31

#5 USC at Notre Dame

Saturday, 3:30 PM EST

This game has an inordinate amount of hype built up considering that the last two games have resulted in two USC wins by the score of 76-3. Notre Dame is improved this season but outside of Jimmy Claussen passing, there isn’t a ton to be really impressed with on the Irish squad. While USC is still progressing on offense, they’re still a significantly better team and I don’t expect anything short of a dominating USC win.

USC 27, Notre Dame 13

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#2 Virginia Tech at #15 Georgia Tech

Saturday, 6:00 PM EST

This is probably the Game of the Year in the ACC. If Virginia Tech wins, they build a virtually insurmountable lead in the ACC Coastal Division while a Georgia Tech win sets up a three way tie with Miami down the stretch run. Either way, the winner of this game puts themselves in good position to win the division and with the weak state of the Atlantic Division, the winner of this game is probably the going to end up as the ACC champion. Georgia Tech has struggled to play strong defense but Virginia Tech isn’t nearly as dangerous on the road as they are in Blacksburg. This is going to be a tight game but I think that Georgia Tech’s triple option offense will confuse Virginia Tech enough to give them the victory.

UPSET ALERT: Georgia Tech 20, Virginia Tech 17

#8 South Carolina at #1 Alabama

Saturday, 7:45 PM EST

This game is going to be dominated by defense. South Carolina and Alabama have been very impressive slowing down the opposition all season and the team that makes the least number of mistakes is going to emerge victorious. That said, I trust Greg McElroy of Alabama more than I do Stephen Garcia of South Carolina with the football. Combine that with a huge home field advantage for Alabama and that equals a Crimson Tide victory.

Alabama 19, South Carolina 9

Missouri at #10 Oklahoma State

Saturday, 9:15 PM EST

After watching Missouri in the rain last week, I have to say that this game will be closer than I originally expected. That said, I think both of these teams embody the current Big XII stereotype: Lots of passing on offense and lots of holes on defense. I think that this game is going to be a shootout but I think that the home team is going to emerge victorious.

Oklahoma State 41, Missouri 35

By: Matt Baxendell
Matt Baxendell is collegesports-fans.com’s football writer. Keep an eye out all fall for his multiple weekly articles discussing everything college football. If you want to get in touch with him, email him at Matt.Baxendell@gmail.com or follow him on Twitter @MattBaxendell