LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) — You could argue there are 14 teams still scrambling for the four spots available in the college football playoff.
Some will argue that number is too large. They are likely correct. Some will argue there are more. They are likely fans.
I’m going with 14.
But that’s the wonderful thing about putting together my Top 5/Bottom 5. The possibilities at the bottom of the poll are endless, even if there are several names that keep making the cut.
Let’s get to it.
Top Five
1. Auburn (5-0) — Pretend there were no pre-season ratings and a team had this list of credentials:
Two wins over ranked opponents, four wins over teams with winning records and two wins away from home. If Alabama had defeated Oregon at a neutral site, Texas A&M on the road and Mississippi State by 33, they’d be a unanimous No.1.
Wins over currently ranked (AP) teams:2 - Auburn1 - Arizona State1 - Cal1 - Clemson1 - Colorado1 - LSU1 - Notre Dame1 - Pitt1 - Texas1 - UGA1 - USC1 - Wisconsin
— Pick Six Previews (@PickSixPreviews) September 30, 2019
2. Louisiana State (4-0) — The Tigers were off Saturday — and they’ll be off next Saturday when Utah State visits Baton Rouge. Then we’ll learn something because three of their next four will be against Florida, Auburn and Alabama. Until then, their win at Texas still ranks as the only 5-star victory of the season.
3. Ohio State (5-0) — I know Nebraska was overrated before the season. I believe I said it a time or two. But 48-7 in Lincoln? The Buckeyes’ average margin of victory after five games is 43.8. Their quarterback, Justin Fields, has 16 touchdowns and zero interceptions.
4. Georgia (4-0) — Apparently it was a big week for Off Weeks in my Top Five because the Bulldogs also did not play. But their power rating improved because Notre Dame handled Virginia and (wink) Arkansas State beat Troy.
5. David Cutcliffe (3-1) — Duke’s only loss was to Alabama. The Blue Devils went to Blacksburg and treated the Hokies like the Eighth Grade B team. And that quarterback Cutcliffe sent to the New York Football Giants looks pretty, pretty, pretty good even if Twitter buried Daniel Jones on NFL Draft Day.
Honorable mention: Clemson, Alabama, Oklahoma, Wisconsin, Notre Dame. Penn State, Florida, Texas, Iowa, Boise State.
Bottom Five:
5. Mike Leach (3-2) — Last week his Washington State Cougars spit out a second-half lead and lost to Chip Kelly and UCLA. Losing to the Bruins 67-63 looked considerably worse after UCLA scored 17 points while losing to Arizona. I don’t have to blast Washington State. Leach took care of it, calling his players “very soft … fat, dumb, happy and entitled.” Better have a practice monitor in Pullman Monday.
4. Purdue (1-3) — Before the season, ESPN’s Football Power Index forecast nearly 5 wins for Jeff Brohm’s team, ranking the Boilermakers No. 62 nationally. By Sunday morning, Purdue had plunged to No. 76 with a prediction of 3.5 wins. Lots and lots and lots of injuries (including Rondale Moore). Lots of bad tackling and lots of interceptions (seven against a dozen touchdown passes).
3. Virginia Tech (2-2) — Losing to Boston College was bad. But that was a road game and the season opener. Losing a Friday night home game to Duke by five touchdowns had skeptics searching for the terms of Justin Fuente’s buyout. He is reportedly signed through the 2024 season with a buyout of $15 million. Hey, nobody thought Louisville would pay Bobby Petrino $14 million.
2. Nebraska (3-2) — The Cornhuskers started the season ranked 24th in the AP college football poll and 26th in the USA Today coaches’ poll. Why? Because they won four of their last six, even though two wins were over Bethune Cookman and Illinois. The Huskers are lucky to be 3-2 because they could have lost to Illinois and South Alabama and then made everybody wonder why ABC thought their game against Ohio State Saturday night was worth prime time coverage. It wasn’t.
1. Charlie Strong (1-3) — In their three games against FBS competition, the South Florida Bulls have been outscored 111-31. The announced attendance for their 48-21 stumble against SMU Saturday was 28,850, smallest crowd of the season. Strong made his name as a defensive guru at Louisville but his team ranks 68th in total defense and 105th in scoring defense.
What’s the problem, Charlie?
“The wins are going to come as long as we don’t get the ‘loser’s limp,’ “ Strong said after the SMU loss.
“We can correct all the things that happened to us, so there’s no need to get down on ourselves or believe there’s no light at the end of the tunnel. We just have work to do.”
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