1) LSU Tigers (7-0, 4-0) - After dismantling the Mississippi Rebels, Alabama coach Nick Saban said, "We're more like Joe Frazier than Ali. We have to pound it." Perfect - LSU can be Ali, winning by making the opponent make mistakes (Tennessee QB Matt Simms stat line in their 38-7 loss: 20 attempts, 6 completions, 2 interceptions), by controlling the tempo (Time of Possession: 38:19 - 21:41) and by outright explosiveness.
2) Alabama Crimson Tide (7-0, 4-0) - A lot of ink/pixels have been spillt praising the Tide's dominant defense. On Saturday against Ole Miss, their offense was on display: 52 points, 615 yards, 9.2 yards per play, 1 punt, 0 turnover. Trent Richardson accounted for 213 yards on his own, and scored 4 TDs.
3) Oklahoma Sooners (6-0, 3-0) - I could no longer justify keeping Oklahoma beneath Boise State after their 55-17 shellacking of Texas. Then, they reward me with a shaky win over bottom dwelling Kansas. The bottom line is this: Oklahoma's two best wins so far are against 3-3 Florida State and 4-2 Texas. They have yet to convince me of their elite status.
4) Boise State Broncos (6-0, 1-0)
5) Wisconsin Badgers (6-0, 2-0) - I was a little disappointed in Wisconsin's 59-7 win over hapless Indiana; it's nothing close to last year's 83-20 final. Things will get a little tougher for the Badgers next week, when they take the best offense in the Big Ten into East Lansing to take on Michigan State and their top-ranked defense.
6) Oklahoma State Cowboys (6-0, 3-0) - So now that I have disparaged Oklahoma, let me turn around and praise them. Comparing common opponents is a dangerous game, but the Texas team that got dominated 55-17 by Oklahoma gave Oklahoma State everything they could handle in a 38-26 game. The Cowboys still have work to do if they want to pull off the upset at Bedlam.
7) Stanford Cardinal (6-0, 4-0) - More than any other team, the Cardinal have suffered from playing a weak schedule that doesn't lend itself to must-see-TV. Their smallest margin of victory so far is 26; however, their opponents combined record is 14-24. This may change, as USC, Oregon, and Notre Dame are still on the docket. However, only one of these teams is actually any good right now. Meanwhile, Andrew Luck's stat line: 23 for 36, 336 yards, 4 TDs, 1 INT.
8) Clemson Tigers (7-0, 4-0) - In many ways, Saturday was a kind of "Separation Saturday," with three teams that we all kind of knew shouldn't have been undefeated - Michigan, Illinois, and Georgia Tech - all losing, while dominant teams like LSU, Alabama, and Wisconsin all rolled. For a while, it looked like Clemson would join the former group, the "Pretenders" division, as they went back and forth with Maryland. In the end, however, they prevailed, 56-45. Is it time now to move them into the "Contenders" division?
9) Kansas State Wildcats (6-0, 3-0)
10) Houston Cougars (6-0, 2-0)
11) Oregon Ducks (5-1, 3-0) - Yeah, I held my breath after Darron Thomas went down with an injury in the third quarter against Arizona State. But then freshman Bryan Bennet came in, and ran the blur offense the way it's supposed to, running for 64 yards and extending the Ducks' lead from 27-24 to 41-27. If I were Chip Kelly, I would seriously considering giving Bennet the start - and sitting and resting both Thomas and LaMichael James - in the Duck's next two games, against Colorado and Washington State.
12) Arkansas Razorbacks (5-1, 1-1) - I really feel bad for Arkansas. In any other conference, in any other division, they would be in the hunt for a conference championship and a likely BCS bid. But they're in the SEC West, buried beneath LSU and Alabama. This week was a bye for the Hogs, who handled Auburn 38-14 last week. They have road trips to Ole Miss and Tennessee before hosting South Carolina on Nov. 5. Call it the undercard to Muhammad "LSU" Ali vs. Joe "Alabama" Frazier.
13) Nebraska Cornhuskers (5-1, 1-1)
14) West Virginia Mountaineers (5-1, 1-0)
15) Penn State Nittany Lions (6-1, 3-0) - Another week, another ugly win over an inferior opponent for the Nittany Lions, this time 23-18 over Purdue. Don't look now, but Penn State's on top of the "Leaders" division.
16) Virginia Tech Hokies (6-1, 2-1)
17) Michigan State Spartans (5-1, 2-0) - Michigan State has now beaten Michigan for four straight years, matching their longest win streak, from 1959-62. More importantly, the Spartans have reinserted themselves into the Big Ten title talk. They are the only team in the "Legends" division without a conference loss, but this record will be challenged next week when Wisconsin comes to town.
18) South Carolina Gamecocks (6-1, 4-1) - You know those games? Those games that a team has absolutely no right to win, and yet, by some miracle, they win anyway? Auburn had about five of those games last year. South Carolina had one of those on Saturday, beating Mississippi State 14-12 on a fourth quarter jump ball in the endzone. If they manage to get back to the SEC Championship game, look back at this game as a favorable sign.
19) Illinois Illini (6-1, 2-1) - That was an incredibly frustrating game. The Illini lost at home to Ohio State 17-7. And, in ending their first 6-0 start since 1952, they did everything that they could do to lose it: Poor clock management, anemic offense, untimely turnovers. Coach Ron Zook has been able to build up a lot of goodwill by this historic run - on Saturday, he spent quite a lot of it.
20) Washington Huskies (5-1, 3-0)
21) Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (6-1, 3-1)
22) Michigan Wolverines (6-1, 2-1) - This sounds familiar. Everyone rides high on Shoelaces Robinson and the Michigan offense until they run into a defense tougher than San Diego State. Against Michigan State, the Wolverines were held to 250 yards of total offense, and, tellingly, went only 3 for 15 on third down. If this team is actually better than the Michigan teams of the past, they will have to find a way to prevent a second-half collapse. This should be possible: They get next week off before hosting Purdue. Nine wins are still within reach, but probably not a conference title.
23) SMU Mustangs (5-1, 3-0)
24) USC Trojans (5-1, 3-1) - The Trojans are still a team in search of an identity. Matt Barkley should be considered one of the best quarterbacks in the country, but their defense remains suspect, and they don't have a dependable running game. I really wish that they could play for the Pac-12 Championship. With them ineligible, the South Division is exceptionally weak. USC begins the toughest part of their schedule when they visit Notre Dame next week; finishing the season 2-4 is not out of the question.
25) Rutgers Scarlet Knights (5-1, 2-0) - Fear the Scarlet Knights! Their defense is tied for first in the nation in forced turnovers, and had two more interceptions on Saturday in their 21-20 comeback victory over Navy. Of course, their freshman QB, Gary Nova, is still on a learning curve: 23/31, 271 yards, 2 TDs, 2 INTs. All eyes will be on Piscataway on Oct. 29, when West Virginia comes to town, in a game that could determine the Big East champ.
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